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An unusual and persistent snowstorm that Madrid’s mayor calls ‘the worst storm in 80 years’ has covered large parts of Spain with snow, freezing traffic and leaving thousands in cars or at train stations and airports providing all services if the snow has suspended. continued to fall on Saturday. The capital and other parts of central Spain have for the first time activated a warning for the red weather, the highest, and called on the army to rescue people from vehicles trapped on everything from small roads to the main roads in the city, according to the AP. The national weather agency AEMET has warned that some regions will receive more than 24 hours of persistent snowfall due to the strange combination of a cold air mass stationary over the Iberian Peninsula and the arrival of the warmer Storm Filomena from the south. AEMET said that up to 8 centimeters of snow could accumulate in large parts of the country, but that the build-up is more than 19 centimeters, even in urban areas.
Carlos Novillo, head of Madrid’s emergency agency, said more than 1,000 vehicles were stuck. “The situation remains … high risk. It is a very complex phenomenon and a critical situation,” Novillo posted on social media on Saturday morning. “We ask that everyone who remains trapped be patient, we will make contact with you.” Airport operator AENA has said that Adolfo Suarez Madrid-Barajas International Airport, the main gateway in and out of the country, will remain closed all day after the blizzard machines and workers tried to keep the runways clean. All trains to and from Madrid, as well as railways between the south and northeast of the country, have been suspended, Renfe said. The storm is expected to move northeast all Saturday, AEMET said.
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