On Sunday, January 11, thousands of tourists found themselves stranded in northern Finland. Kittilä Airport's operations were virtually paralyzed due to a critical drop in temperature, leading to mass flight cancellations. This was reported by Yle, writes UNN.
Details
According to the Finnish national broadcaster Yle, on Sunday morning, the temperature in the airport area dropped to minus 37°C. Such weather conditions made standard operations impossible, including de-icing aircraft and technical maintenance of the planes.
The situation remains difficult, as the Finnish Meteorological Institute predicts further cooling. On Monday, temperatures in Lapland are expected to drop to minus 40°C. Despite Finns being accustomed to harsh winters, this year's frosts have proven to be significantly stronger than average.
Worsening weather conditions in Europe
Extreme cold, snowfalls, and strong winds have affected not only the north but also the central and eastern regions of Europe. A transport collapse is also observed in Germany. On Sunday, railway passengers continued to face long delays and cancellations. It should be recalled that on Friday, the operator Deutsche Bahn completely stopped train traffic in the north of the country due to intense snowfalls and black ice.