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WEATHER

Wintry weather cancels flights in Frankfurt

Snow and freezing precipitation prompted the cancellation of more than 130 flights at Frankfurt Airport on Sunday morning with numerous other flights delayed, an airport spokeswoman said.

Published: 20 January 2013 13:04 CET
Wintry weather cancels flights in Frankfurt
Photo: DPA

Domestic and inter-European flights were affected, she said, adding that the number of delays could increase further, as planes first have to be de-iced before they can take off.

Trains will replace canceled flights for destinations that can be reached by rail. The weather resulted in 17 canceled flights on Saturday, she said.

Click here for The Local’s weather forecast

Meanwhile traffic at the Hamburg Airport is expected to be on a normal schedule on Monday, following a strike on Friday by security personnel that resulted in the cancellation of 63 of the 176 scheduled flights and left 12,000 travellers stranded.

A spokesman for the Verdi union called the walk out “a complete success” as it forced airport officials to put an offer on the table.

The union wants the hourly wage raised to €14.50 from €11.80. Employers said this amounted to a 22 percent raise, which is “completely unreasonable” and have offered a 5.9 percent wage hike.

DAPD/DPA/The Local/mw

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WEATHER

Winter weather returns to Germany after spring heat spell

Temperatures in Germany almost hit 30C in the last few weeks. But winter-like weather is well and truly back - and ski slopes are even re-opening in some areas.

Published: 19 April 2024 12:42 CEST
Winter weather returns to Germany after spring heat spell

Many people in Germany will have already packed away their winter clothes as spring has seen high temperatures and lots of sun.

But a cosy hoody and jacket will be needed again.

According to the German Weather Service (DWD), a blast of polar air has been moving in bringing ice, rain and sleet that is turning to snow, particularly at higher altitudes. 

Those who want to take advantage of the winter weather can even get back on the slopes. Many ski resorts had to close early for the season – but a few are reopening. 

On Friday, the ski lift at Kandel in the Emmendingen district (Baden-Württemberg) opens for floodlit skiing from 6pm. to 10pm. If the snow remains, the lifts will also operate at the weekend from 9am to 5pm.

Meanwhile, the lift at Seebuck (Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald district) is operating on Saturday from 1pm to 5pm.

‘Aprilschmuddelwetter’

Lower-lying spots have also seen hailstones and snow showers. People in Munich dealt with a flurry of snow on Thursday as temperatures fell. High temperatures ranged from 4C in Oberallgäu to 12C in Lower Franconia.

In a post on X, the DWD described it as Aprilschmuddelwetter – Schmuddelwetter translates to “mucky” or “foul weather” and is often used in Germany in spring when there’s lots of rain.

The DWD said: “April foul weather on Friday: Widespread rain, snow in high mountain areas. In the afternoon, partly heavy sleet showers from the north-west, isolated thunderstorms. In addition, stormy winds in places. Temperatures will barely reach double figures.”

The DWD shared a photo with tulips poking out from the snow in Neuhaus am Rennweg in Thuringia and said it was symbolic of the current weather situation.

The low pressure system moving in from the North Sea was bringing more widespread rain, thunderstorms and hail on Friday. 

In Berlin temperatures hovered around 7C on Friday during the day with continuous rain. It was around 5C in Erfurt and 8C in Kiel. 

In western Germany, it was slightly less cool with temperatures reaching 10C – but torrential rain was forecast. 

Changeable weather with showers was forecast on Saturday, while some sunshine in the north and east of Germany was expected on Sunday. 

At night, there is a risk of frost, ice and freezing rain in the coming days in spots where the temperature drops.

This comes after a series of storms and strong winds lashed the country earlier this week.

READ ALSO: Storms and high winds hit Germany

Just a few days before that, Germany was bathed in sunshine as temperatures climbed up to nearly 30C.

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