Europe goes in the deep freezer

Snow, ice sweep Europe, stranding potentially thousands of drivers.

Snow and icy weather swept through parts of Europe on Saturday, stranding drivers overnight and leaving thousands of homes without power in Britain.

Snow also covered parts of Switzerland and southwestern Germany, where more than 20 cm (8 inches) of snow fell in higher parts of Germany’s Black Forest.

Up to 60 cm (2 feet) of snow is predicted this weekend in the French Alps. This is normally one of the busiest vacation weeks of the year — if drivers can reach the mountains.

But not this time.

Potentially thousands could be forced to stay on the road overnight

With more than three-quarters of the country under severe weather watch, traffic jams snarled many of France’s major highways on Saturday. Only 7,000 drivers of 36,000 expected were able to reach their destination in Savoie, one of the Alps regions, according to the Interior Ministry. Emergency shelters have been set up along the way for potentially thousands who are going to be forced to stay on the road overnight.

Snow and ice led to a roughly 20-km (12.5-mile) traffic jam on the A8 highway near Stuttgart in southern Germany.

http://bismarcktribune.com/news/world/europe/snow-ice-sweep-britain-stranding-drivers/imag e_c2f65254-1e45-5064-a0ae-a6b40351e482.html

Thanks to Bill Sellers for this link