Madrid Airport Shut After Storm Filomena Covers City in Snow - Bloomberg

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Retiro Park in heavy snowfall in Madrid, on Jan. 7. 

Photographer: Paul Hanna/Bloomberg

Madrid’s international airport has been shut after heavy snowfall covered the Spanish capital and much of the rest of the country.

Spain’s biggest hub will remain closed Saturday, state-controlled airport manager Aena SA said on Twitter. More than 50 flights were already canceled or diverted Friday. The snowfall has also prompted the suspension of train services to and from Madrid, while a soccer game of local club Atletico de Madrid slated for the afternoon has been postponed.

Snowfall in front of the Puerta de Alcala monument in Madrid.

Photographer: Paul Hanna/Bloomberg

Storm Filomena moved north from the Gulf of Cadiz, causing the biggest snowfall in decades in Madrid. While some extemporaneous skiers appeared in the streets of the city, its bus services have been suspended and a special military unit deployed, mainly to help trapped drivers.

Around 1,000 vehicles that got stuck in the snow have been rescued in the Madrid region, while hundreds are still blocked, according to local emergency services. Two people were found dead after their car was swept away by a river in the southern province of Malaga, according to an emailed statement from the Spanish Interior Ministry.

Schools and universities in the Madrid area will remain closed Monday and Tuesday, regional president Isabel Diaz Ayuso said.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez urged residents on Twitter to avoid journeys and follow the instructions of emergency services.

Evitemos los desplazamientos y sigamos las indicaciones de los servicios de emergencia. Extrememos la precaución ante la borrasca #Filomena.

Una vez más, enorme el trabajo de la @UMEgob y los profesionales que están intentando rescatar a las personas atrapadas en la nieve. https://t.co/3nvdmEGoq2

— Pedro Sánchez (@sanchezcastejon) January 9, 2021

“The situation is extremely serious. I’m in direct contact with all the security and emergency services. Stay at home,” Madrid mayor Jose Luis Martinez-Almeida said on Twitter.

Filomena has affected large swathes of the country, with hundreds of highways and roads cut off. A ferry with more than 60 people on board was rescued Friday in the southern archipelago of the Canary Islands after the storm made it run aground.

The cold snap has also pushed natural gas prices in Spain to a record high. The country is a key component of the global LNG market, accounting for Europe’s highest number of terminals for the fuel.

(Adds information on two fatalities in the fourth paragraph, schools closing in fifth paragraph.)

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