austria.ORF.at: 400 operations due to roof avalanches
Britons to build snowmen
Hundreds of cold weather deaths in Poland and Russia
weather.ORF.at: Low pressure area over Europe
Earlier this week, thousands of students in the UK had reason to cheer. You were allowed to stay at home thanks to heavy snowfall, because around 3.000 schools remained closed. Many used the free time to enjoy the joys of winter – and so snowmen and igloos were created in numerous gardens.
However, this is not enough for Roy Strokes of the UK Environment Agency, a department of the Department of the Environment, as British media reported. He made people sit up and take notice on Wednesday with a rather unconventional suggestion: "If everyone builds a snowman, the thaw will be delayed." In this way, Strokes, according to the "Telegraph", wants to curb the risk of flooding, which can be expected when temperatures rise.
Heavy snowfall continued Wednesday in some parts of the U.K
In fact, plus temperatures are expected across the U.K. as early as this weekend, and combined with heavy rainfall, the melting snow could flood numerous basements and cause new traffic chaos due to flooded streets.
No "significant impact" on snowmelt
Simon Keeling of the weather website Weatherweb.co.uk warns that a rise in temperatures from minus 13 degrees on Friday to plus 13 degrees on Tuesday will mean "a lot of water standing around". Stroke’s recommendation soon turned out to be a hoax, however, as another Environment Agency spokesperson confirmed.
"Building snowmen is fun," the Daily Mail quoted the unnamed spokesman as saying, "but unfortunately it’s unlikely to have a significant impact on the speed at which the snow melts."." The most important thing is to find out whether you live in a dangerous zone, he stressed. In addition, there is the possibility to register for the free warning service on the website of the Evironment Agency.
Chaos at Heathrow airport
At London Heathrow Airport, one of the world’s busiest airports, more than 175 flights were canceled Monday. Already at the weekend hundreds of flights had been cancelled there. Also the airports in Birmingham, Cardiff, Bristol and Southampton were partially closed. There were train cancellations on the Eurostar between London and Brussels. Parts of major highways across the country have been closed in the meantime. Even the London Underground was affected.
After the snow chaos, flooding now threatens over the weekend
The weather authority issued a so-called red warning for some regions at the weekend, which is a rare occurrence. With this, it recommends to travel only in important cases, as up to 30 centimeters of snow and, in addition, snowstorms were expected to occur. Hospitals put in extra shifts. Four climbers died in Scotland at the weekend after being caught in an avalanche.