Heavy snowfall and freezing rain has led to the cancellation of hundreds of flights and trains, crashes on icy roads, and school closures across Germany.
At Frankfurt airport, Germany’s biggest, more than 500 flights were cancelled, while in Munich more than 250 arrivals and departures were cancelled.
In western Germany, Saarbruecken airport closed for the day, as Dusseldorf and Cologne/Bonn airports were also affected by delays and cancelations.
The freezing rain across western and southern Germany also led to countless crashes on icy roads in the early hours of Wednesday.
As a precaution, many schools and kindergartens in the country closed for the day, and some companies offered their employees the option of working from home.
In the states of Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse and Baden-Wuerttemberg, the service said there was a “great danger to life and limb due to freezing rain with heavy ice accumulation; widespread ice breakage”.
People living in the regions were asked to avoid driving and stay inside if possible.
North of Germany, the Scandinavian countries were also hit by the cold winter weather.
Police in several parts of Denmark urged people to stay at home.
The airport in Oslo, Norway, said: “Due to heavy snowfall in the Oslo area, there are delays and cancellations with public transportation to and from Oslo airport.
“If you are going to travel, allow plenty of time to get to the airport and follow the information from your airline.”
