MADRID (Reuters) – Heavy snowfall by Storm Filomena trapped hundreds of drivers in their cars on Friday when roads were blocked and the airport in Madrid closed.
The traffic authorities said the M-30 and M-40 highways near Madrid were among more than 400 roads where snow vehicles obstructed. Citizens were asked to avoid non-essential trips.
Thousands of drivers were trapped inside their cars or trucks in Madrid and could not move on the icy roads.
‘I drove to see my husband in the hospital and have been stuck here for three hours. It is a journey that must take 15 minutes, ‘a woman from her car told Spanish television RNE.
The Red Cross took food to trapped truck drivers on the A4 in Madrid.
‘Due to the unfavorable meteorological conditions, flights from Madrid Barajas airport are being diverted. Consult your airline for the status of your flight, “said Aena, who controls the country’s airports, in a tweet.
Some welcomed the chance to have fun in the snow.
Skiers hovered through Puerta del Sol in central Madrid and one man was filmed on a sleigh driving a pack of dogs through the streets of the capital.
The Real Madrid football team, which was on its way to Pamplona for a match against rivals Osasuna from La Liga, waited four hours at the airport in Madrid on a plane before taking off.
With up to 20 cm (8 inches) of snow forecast in 24 hours and temperatures around zero centimeters, the south of the Madrid region was at its highest warning level for the first time since the creation of the system in 2007.
Large parks in the capital, including the Retiro next to the Prado Museum, have been closed as a precaution.
“I came out to see and enjoy the snow. There is very little to do these days (due to the pandemic), ”said Juan Jose (24), a marketing manager, outside Retiro Park.
High-speed services between Madrid and the southeastern cities of Alicante and Valencia have been suspended.
The Meteorological Agency (Aemet) recorded a record temperature of -35.6C at Vega de Lourdes in Leon, northern Spain.
Reporting by Graham Keeley Emma Pinedo and Cristina Sanchez, editing by Andrei Khalip, Gareth Jones, Andrew Heavens, David Gregorio and Sonya Hepinstall