Europe death toll soars as temperatures fall to -30C
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THE death toll due to the severe weather sweeping Europe jumped to more than 90 yesterday as temperatures plummeted to as low as -30C.
But travel restrictions began to ease a little as transport providers came to terms with the snow and ice.
In Poland, police appealed for people to help if they came across homeless or drunk people lying outside, as temperatures dropped towards -20C in some areas.
Up to 10 people are believed to have died due to the cold in the country yesterday, bringing the winter toll to 79.
Eurostar, operator of high-speed trains through the Channel Tunnel, resumed a limited service after its service stopped working in snowy weather, causing four days of cancellations.
The backlog of thousands of stranded travellers was expected to take several days to clear.
However, air passengers were warned of fresh flight disruptions. EasyJet and Ryanair cancelled flights from Luton Airport as well as departures from Italy and Germany, where some airports also shut down. Gatwick and London City airports opened yesterday after closing. Heathrow airport was running a "good service," it said on its website.
"The majority of our flights are operating today, but there have been some short-haul cancellations this morning due to the knock-on effect of the weather disruption yesterday," said British Airways. The carrier cancelled many flights from Heathrow on Monday.
Snow and low temperatures swept across continental Europe over the last four days and have been blamed for 90 deaths, including 42 people, mostly homeless, who died in Poland last weekend.
Up to 27 people died in the Ukraine, while 13 people died in car accidents in Austria, Finland and Germany.
Frankfurt Airport opened yesterday after closing on Monday evening. The Italian government sent 800 soldiers to help dig out Milan after heavy snows blocked highways and disrupted air and rail travel.
In Britain, the AA said Monday was "easily the worst day" it has had in 10 years, with almost 22,000 jobs for the vehicle-rescue service. Special teams have been deployed to the worst-affected areas to help people stuck in remote places, and members out on the roads are being made a priority.
An emergency shelter was set up in Basingstoke after 2,000 vehicles ground to a halt.
In Buckinghamshire, west of London, about 100 people, including 20 children, spent the night in a department store after being snowed in.
The UK's Met Office forecaster issued severe weather warnings for icy roads last night in southern, eastern and western England and for heavy snow in Scotland. Northwestern Europe may be colder than average in the three months through March, boosting demand for energy to heat homes and offices, according to US-based forecaster WSI Corporation.
January will be one to two degrees Celsius colder than usual in north-western Europe.
The recent colder weather in Europe has been caused by a combination of factors including the current El Nino event and cold mid-latitude North Atlantic sea surface temperatures.
- Adam Price in London
Irish Independent
