Snow causes disruption for air travellers in England and Germany
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People walk in the snow at Sefton Park in Liverpool on Jan 5.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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LONDON, BERLIN - Heavy snow across parts of England on Jan 5 was set to cause disruption for air travellers, with runways closed at airports in Bristol and Liverpool.
The Met Office said Bingley in northern England had seen 12cm of snow overnight.
An amber weather warning – the second-most serious – for snow and freezing rain was in place for much of Wales, central England and parts of north-western England.
Higher ground in Wales and northern England was forecast to see up to 30cm of snow.
Some rural communities above 300m could be cut off, with up to 40cm of snow, the Met Office said.
Manchester and Liverpool John Lennon airports in north-west England closed their runways on Jan 5.
Central Birmingham airport also suspended operations for several hours overnight for snow to be cleared from its runway, but said it expected it would be “business as usual” on the morning of Jan 5.
Bristol airport also reopened at around 11pm local time on Jan 4 but warned of delays due to aircraft being out of position.
The National Grid said it was working to restore power after outages in central and south-west England and south Wales.
Snow and black ice also forced the cancellation of dozens of flights on Jan 5 at Frankfurt airport, Germany’s largest airport.
In all, 120 of some 1,990 flights at the airport in the country’s west were cancelled, with a spokesperson telling AFP take-off and landing runways needed clearing while “de-icing the planes is also more complex and more demanding”.
Poor visibility was another factor behind the annulations.
In Munich, 35 flights were cancelled as a precaution late evening on Jan 4, out of a total of 750 departures and landings scheduled at Germany’s second largest airport, a spokesperson said.
Disruptions had begun on the evening of Jan 3 at Berlin-Brandenburg airport, with 30 flights disrupted amid icy conditions in the capital.
Germany’s meteorological office warned of freezing rain on Jan 5 after snowfall overnight and recommended passengers avoid unnecessary travel. AFP
