The Dutch authorities have declared a rare “red code” emergency for the whole country, as it was hit by its first snowstorm in over a decade.
The Darcy storm, which also caused temperatures to plummet across Germany, brought winds of up to 90 km per hour and temperatures of up to -5 ° C (23 ° F).
The weather website Weer.nl said an eight-strong wind on Sunday night was measured in combination with snowfall, adding: “This officially means a snowstorm in our country.”
“It is the first snowstorm in a long time: the last snowstorm occurred in January 2010,” he said.
Dozens of flights were delayed or canceled at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport, while Eindhoven airport in the south of the country canceled all services.
All trains were canceled in the Netherlands, including international services to Germany. Trams were stopped in Amsterdam, while a tram derailed in the snow in The Hague.
Drivers were advised to avoid traveling and more than 80 cars skidded off the road.
Most of the country had between five and 10 centimeters (two and four inches) of snow, but some areas received 30 centimeters, said public broadcaster NOS.
The conditions were so severe that the Dutch government closed all coronavirus testing centers for several days.
Up to 10 days of sub-zero daytime temperatures are expected in the Netherlands, raising hopes in the skating-obsessed country that the canals will freeze.
Prime Minister Mark Rutte said ice skating will be allowed if the canals freeze for the first time since 2018, but he warned people to watch for social distance and try not to fall and end up in already overburdened hospitals.
Hopes that a 200-km ice skating marathon across 11 cities called the Elfstedentocht could be held for the first time since 1997 are on the ice because of coronavirus restrictions.
All four Dutch first division Eredivisie football games on Sunday were canceled, as well as a German Bundesliga game.
In Germany, the blizzard caused major train disruptions and service cancellations between cities like Hamburg and Hanover.
The thick snow of up to 30 centimeters hindered road traffic, with hundreds of accidents and part of a highway in North Rhine-Westphalia closed by the police after it turned into an ice rink.
Several vehicles were trapped under piles of snow and their owners had to dig them up with shovels, according to photos on the Bild website.
Heavier snow, up to 40 centimeters, was expected in northern parts of Germany at night, the DWD weather service said.
Belgium, which is also a neighbor of the Netherlands, received a light layer of snow, but expected a large drop in temperature throughout the week. Much of eastern Britain was also affected.