photo: Uwe Schwarzbach / Flickr/Snow covered railway yard, Bavaria, Germany
Europe is facing a severe winter onslaught as powerful storms Goretti and Elli batter large parts of the continent, disrupting transport, cutting power to tens of thousands of households, and forcing people indoors. Rail and air services have been heavily affected.
For several consecutive days, extreme winter weather has significantly impacted daily life across multiple European countries. Severe conditions have curtailed rail and air traffic, forced school closures in parts of Germany, and left tens of thousands of homes without electricity in the United Kingdom and France. The Czech rail network has also reported operational disruptions.
In the United Kingdom, Storm Goretti has brought wind gusts reaching up to 159 kilometres per hour, accompanied by heavy snowfall. More than 47,000 households in the south-west of the country were left without electricity. Meteorological services issued yellow and orange weather warnings, while Birmingham Airport was forced to limit operations due to adverse conditions. Air transport disruptions extended beyond the UK. Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport cancelled 80 flights scheduled for Friday. Morning connections between Prague and London, as well as Prague and Amsterdam, were also cancelled, according to Prague’s Václav Havel Airport.
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France: Power Outages, School Closures and Extreme Winds
Severe weather has also swept across north-western France. In the Normandy department of Manche, wind gusts of up to 213 kilometres per hour were recorded. Authorities issued the highest red-level weather warning, later downgraded to orange alerts across more than twenty departments.
Firefighters responded to dozens of incidents involving fallen trees and damaged power lines. Approximately 50,000 households were left without electricity. Schools were closed in the departments of Manche and Seine-Maritime, while authorities also warned of coastal waves reaching up to ten metres in height.
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Germany: Snow, Ice and Rail Disruptions
Germany is contending with Storm Elli, which has brought freezing temperatures, black ice and heavy snowfall. In Baden-Württemberg, a bus slid off a slope overnight, leaving three people with minor injuries. Near Bad Kissingen, dozens of freight vehicles became stranded.
Rail transport has also been affected. Operators reported delays and cancellations across parts of the network. In Hamburg, Lower Saxony, Bremen and parts of Schleswig-Holstein, schools remained closed on Friday due to hazardous conditions.