Troops rescued trapped drivers from their vehicles on Saturday as heavy snowfall from Storm Filomena caused travel chaos across Spain.
“Owing to the forecast of snow and for security, Madrid Barajas airport will remain closed throughout Saturday,” Aena, which controls the country’s airports, said in a tweet.
The airport was closed on Friday night after the rare blizzard made flying impossible. At least 50 flights to Madrid, Malaga, Tenerife and Ceuta, a Spanish territory in north Africa, were cancelled, Aena said.
Soldiers worked to reach drivers stranded for hours on roads around Madrid.
“We continue the rescue of vehicles on the A4, A5, M40 and M607,” tweeted the Unit for Military Emergencies, which deployed 147 soldiers.
Carlos Novillo, the head of Madrid’s emergency agency, said more than 1,000 vehicles had become trapped, mostly on the city’s ring road and the main motorway that leads south toward the Castilla-La Mancha and Andalucia regions.
“The situation remains of high risk. This is a very complex phenomenon and a critical situation,” he said. “We ask all those who remain trapped to be patient, we will get to you.”
High-speed rail services between Madrid and the south-eastern cities of Alicante and Valencia were suspended, as were bus services in Madrid, the city council said on Saturday.
Madrid and four other regions were on red alert on Saturday as more heavy snowfalls were forecast, the State Meteorological Agency said.
Madrid city council called on people to stay at home.
The wintry weather also prevented some of the country’s top football teams from travelling for La Liga games. A flight to Madrid carrying players from the current league leader, Athletic Bilbao, had to return to Bilbao, and second-place Real Madrid’s team was unable to take off for its match against Osasuna on Saturday night.
Video footage of Madrileños skiing on a main commercial avenue and a dog sledge in the central Puerta del Sol square were circulated widely on social media.
source https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/09/army-rescues-motorists-after-storm-filomena-blankets-spain-in-snow
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