Weather
First of all, winter weather with a northeast-southwest gradient
The winter weather will remain in Germany for the time being. photo
© Marcus Brandt/dpa
It remains wintry in many places in Germany. While it remained quiet on the streets overnight, the railway is still expecting disruptions on Wednesday. The cold also poses problems in other ways.
“In the northeast it can snow down to the lowlands and a few centimeters of snow can accumulate. We can also expect new snow mainly in the Black Forest and Allgäu.” In the lowlands the weather is otherwise “rather dingy, wet and cold”. Slippery conditions continue to be an issue, especially in the northeast and in the mountains. “On Thursday night it will drop below zero degrees again, so you have to be a little more careful about freezing water,” said the weather expert.
Location on the streets is mostly quiet
Despite snow and ice in large parts of Germany, Autobahn GmbH has sufficient supplies of grit, according to a media report. “There have been no shortages of grit so far. The situation is under control,” a company spokesman told the “Rheinische Post”. According to the information, the Autobahn GmbH master depots have prepared extensively for the winter season. Traffic on the nationwide route network has so far been largely trouble-free.
On Wednesday night it was mostly quiet on the streets across Germany. Apart from minor ice accidents, there were no reports from the state situation centers. “It snowed all day and the road conditions were sometimes borderline, but the accidents were completely normal,” said a spokeswoman for the situation center in Hamburg. Things also remained quiet in Bremen despite the fresh snow. “The clearing vehicles are rolling and there were no major traffic accidents in the evening and at night,” said a spokeswoman for the situation center there.
“We were lucky when it came to the freezing rain; we had expected more. But the situation was probably assessed correctly by the road users,” said a spokesman for the situation center in Brandenburg. Even in Bavaria, which was particularly affected by the snow at the beginning of the week, the streets were quiet. “There is a thaw here, so we currently have no ice or snow on the roads,” said a police spokesman in Upper Bavaria that night.
Railway announces restrictions
However, there are further restrictions on rail. “Due to the onset of winter, there will be delays and train cancellations in the south until Wednesday evening. We advise against traveling beyond Munich,” Deutsche Bahn said on its website. Since the railway expects very high capacity utilization for the trains on Wednesday, the company recommends planning trips from Thursday if possible.
In addition to restrictions and accidents caused by snow and ice, winter also brings other problems. Homeless people in particular suffer from the cold temperatures. “The risk for homeless citizens of becoming victims of the cold is increasing,” said the managing director of the Federal Working Group for Homeless Assistance, Werena Rosenke, to the “Rheinische Post”. “Winter is just starting, and those who live on the streets often have a weak immune system.”
According to the association, emergency housing assistance has already increased its support offerings. Rosenke referred to so-called cold buses and heated lounges. With a view to the budget negotiations, the association called for stable financing of the aid offers. “Even in difficult household situations, the cold-weather aids, which are survival aids, must not be left out of the question, said Rosenke. Every death is one too many.