German weather service warns of danger of black ice

NLow temperatures and black ice are causing more accidents in Germany on Tuesday. In Brandenburg, the West Police Department reported almost 60 collisions in the morning, according to the German Press Agency (dpa). There were also injuries.

Accidents also occurred in Bavaria, Saxony and Lower Saxony. In Oderwitz, Saxony, a 28-year-old man died when his car crashed into two trees when he left the road due to slippery conditions.

The Autobahn 27 near Bremerhaven was temporarily closed on Tuesday morning due to an ice accident. A truck skidded near the Bremerhaven-Zentrum junction and left the road, the police said. The truck then caught fire and had to be laboriously extinguished. According to the police, there were significant traffic delays. The truck driver was taken to hospital with minor injuries.

The German Weather Service (DWD) is expecting extreme weather for Wednesday: there will be heavy snowfall in central Germany. To the south, prolonged and heavy freezing rain falls. According to dpa, the DWD warned that the severe weather situation would have “large-scale effects on road and rail traffic”. In large parts of Hesse, 15 to 30 centimeters of snow is expected to fall in twelve to 24 hours, higher amounts cannot be ruled out.

Freezing rain will fall until the evening hours of Wednesday, especially along and south of the Main and Moselle, and black ice will form widely there. The DWD warns of “extreme ice accretion on objects, trees and overhead lines as well as an increased risk of ice breaking”. Lows are between plus 6 degrees on the High Rhine and minus 6 degrees in the north. There is a risk of icy conditions until Thursday morning, and in Bavaria even into Friday.

Low Gertrud brings air masses from France that are up to 20 degrees warmer than our current winter temperatures, reports the DWD. The resulting precipitation can then lead to thick layers of ice in the form of sleet. That's why freezing rain is expected, especially in southwest Germany, reports Nico Bauer, meteorologist at the German Weather Service, to FAZ.NET.

“Such warm air, which pushes into our air mass limit, occurs more often in winter and also in summer. But the greater intensity of the warm air mass is particularly precarious at the current temperatures,” explains Bauer. In Germany, these warm air masses meet an extremely cold temperature near the ground – this causes the rain to freeze immediately. “The extent of the freezing rain in combination with the snowfall to the north is relatively rare,” says Bauer.

The DWD expects major disruptions to road and rail traffic and therefore recommends avoiding car journeys if possible and only driving with winter equipment. But even this only provides limited protection against accidents: “In the regions with the highest warning level, i.e. in Saarland, southern Rhineland-Palatinate, northwestern Bavaria and southern Hesse, the freezing rain will be particularly long-lasting. With this slippery conditions, winter tires are no longer of any use,” warns Bauer. In his experience, most people adhere to the severe weather warning and the call to stay at home if possible. “Many people decide to stay in their home office or avoid shopping by car.” This could prevent many accidents.

In Hesse there will be restrictions on school operations on Wednesday due to the weather warning, as a spokesman for the Hesse Ministry of Culture told the FAZ in the afternoon. In the Offenbach district and the city of Offenbach, schools are adapting to emergency care and distance learning. In the Main-Kinzig district, Lahn-Dill district and the Limburg-Weilburg district, parents and students also have to adapt to lessons via video link. But the weather is expected to improve again by the weekend; After Friday, the cold air mass from the north will ensure wintry but dry conditions Weather.