Extreme weather in Germany: Heavy snow and sleet make for slippery roads.
The weather service warns of storms and heavy rain.
The news ticker.
Numerous accidents on slippery roads
: the police in the Eifel and Aachen are busy
Red alert – severe weather in Germany
: The weather service warns of snow, gusts of wind and lightning
Turbulent onset of winter in March
: Particular weather conditions ensure heavy snow and sleet
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news ticker
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the weather in Germany
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Update from March 8, 2:03 p.m
.: Snow and ice make road users difficult.
The roads are extremely slippery.
The police from North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse and Schleswig-Holstein reported dozens of accidents.
According to the police, more than a hundred weather-related traffic accidents have been registered in Aachen (NRW) alone (as of 12:30 p.m.).
In most cases it was only damage to the bodywork, but there are also injuries.
Numerous accidents on slippery roads: the police in the Eifel and Aachen are busy
In the Eifel (Rhineland-Palatinate) the winter service is in continuous operation.
Six school children were slightly injured in an accident, reports the Trier police.
A van driver lost control of his vehicle and crashed head-on into the minibus in the oncoming lane.
Both drivers were taken to a hospital for observation.
Up to 10 centimeters of fresh snow fell over 400 meters.
In traffic jams locally up to 20 centimeters, reports the DWD.
Several cars and trucks crashed in Schleswig-Holstein.
A milk truck slipped into a ditch near Dellstedt on Wednesday morning and lost part of its milk load.
The driver was slightly injured.
The salvage work will continue into the evening hours.
In Hesse, the police reported several accidents on snow-covered roads on Wednesday night, most of which ended lightly.
In the Werra-Meißner district, according to the North Hesse police, the onset of snowfall had no major impact on road traffic and the number of traffic accidents. A 19-year-old slipped her car when turning and collided with a traffic sign.
A 52-year-old slipped into a ditch during the night, as did another driver on Wednesday morning.
Red alert – severe weather in Germany: The weather service warns of snow, gusts of wind and ice
Update from March 8th, 11.40 a.m
.: Red alert!
The German Weather Service (DWD) warns of hurricane gusts (up to 110 km/h) at altitudes over 1000 meters, especially in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.
In the Black Forest, speeds of up to 130 kilometers per hour can be reached, the DWD announced in the warning report for Baden-Württemberg.
The wind will therefore freshen up in the southern half of the country on Wednesday.
These districts are currently (as of March 8, 10:54 a.m.) affected by the severe weather warning.
Red alert in Baden-Württemberg
:
district of Loerrach
Waldshut district
Black Forest-Baar district
district of Emmendingen
District of Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald and the city of Freiburg
Red alert in Bavaria:
Oberallgaeu district
Ostallgaeu district
Garmisch-Partenkirchen district
District of Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen
district of Miesbach
district and city of Rosenheim
District of Traunstein
district of Berchtesgadener Land
Onset of winter in Germany: Special weather conditions ensure heavy snow and sleet
First report from March 8, 2023
Offenbach – In the night of Wednesday (March 8th) it snowed heavily in western Germany.
The onset of winter caused numerous accidents in North Rhine-Westphalia and Hesse.
Trucks got stuck on the slippery roads.
More than 10 centimeters of fresh snow caused massive problems on the A44 in Hessisch Lichtenau (Werra-Meißner district).
The police blocked the entrance and exit completely.
Sleet and snowfall are expected to continue in the west on Wednesday.
They spread further east as the day progresses.
Heavy rain and snow: air mass limit causes extreme weather in Germany
A so-called air mass limit is responsible for the March winter.
This air mass limit is above the middle of Germany.
"On its north side lies sea air of polar origin, in which the weather calms down.
In the south, on the other hand, increasingly mild and humid Atlantic air is directed and there is sometimes heavy rainfall," explains the DWD.
In North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate and Hesse in particular, it is snowing heavily down to low altitudes.
In the south, on the other hand, the air is mild.
The DWD warns of wind and storms.
Strong to stormy gusts (7 to 8 Bft) are to be expected at low altitudes.
Storm gusts (9 Bft) in the mountains.
In exposed mountain locations, heavy gusts of wind up to hurricane gusts (10 to 12 Bft).
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Weather in Germany: Air mass limit separates the cold air in the north from milder air in the south, as the DWD graphic shows.
© Screenshot Twitter/DWD
Current weather: Typical March winter in Germany?
The weather conditions are "totally typical" for March, according to qualified meteorologist Dominik Jung, managing director of the weather service Q.met in a press release.
Like April, March is a transitional month.
It goes from winter to summer.
"The old, cold winter air masses and the already quite warm summer air masses from the Mediterranean region are very often directly opposite one another.
We are experiencing that very well these days.”
(ml)
