Germany's central and northern areas have been hit hard by heavy snow and winter storms. Rail and road traffic in large parts of the country have been disrupted, and some Bundesliga football matches have been canceled.
German Weather Service DWD spoke of an 'extraordinary onset of winter'Image: Hauke-Christian Dittrich/dpa/picture alliance
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Germany snowed in by extreme winter weather
A major snowstorm caused injuries, accidents, railway and football match cancellations across northern and central Germany. Forecasters say the snowstorm is set to bring even lower temperatures in the upcoming week.
Image: Jens Büttner/dpa/picture alliance
Snow blankets northern, eastern Germany
Pedestrians walk along the Elbe River in Dresden. In its warning, Germany's weather service warned of an "extraordinary onset of winter," and said the snowstorm has affected northern and central parts of Germany the most.
Image: Sebastian Kahnert/dpa/picture alliance
Extreme weather warning issued
A jogger runs close to the Reichstag building in Berlin. DWD, the German Weather Service, issued an extreme weather warning, saying emergency crews have been put on standby across the country.
Image: Christoph Soeder/dpa/picture alliance/dpa
Sled and slide
Adults and children in the eastern state of Saxony enjoy a day out in the snow with winter activities such as sledding and snow boarding. The snow seen here near the town of Altenberg is noticeably tainted by Sahara sand.
Image: Matthias Schrader/AP/picture alliance
Bundesliga games called off
Multiple football games were cancelled on Sunday due to severe weather. The Bundesliga game between Arminia Bielefeld and Werder Bremen was cancelled just hours before it was due to begin, while the second-division game between Paderborn and Heidenheim was also called off.
Image: Arminia Bielefeld/dpa/picture alliance
Rail connections cancelled across Germany
A regional train heads in the direction of Koblenz, in North Rhine-Westphalia. Large portions of Germany's most populous state woke up to a blanket of snowfall. Deutsche Bahn (DB), Germany's train operator, canceled several routes around the country, and has offered refunds in the affected regions.
Image: Fabian Strauch/dpa/picture alliance
Reduced visibility causes accidents
People walk along an avenue in Berlin. The storm, which has caused dense snow drifts and limited visibility, resulted in dozens of injuries and traffic accidents around Germany.
Image: Florian Gaertner/photothek/imago images
Frozen motorways see spike in accidents
A tree branch is frozen is Siegen, in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). Police closed several slippery motorways as hundreds of accidents were reported across the country. In NRW alone, authorities said a total of 222 car accidents had been registered since Saturday.
Image: Leon Kuegeler/REUTERS
Stuck in traffic
Heavy snow fall and powerful wind across Germany has delayed traffic in a number of cities, posing a challenge for drivers trying to make their way around. Winter storms brought up to 32 centimeters (12 inches) of snow, wind gusting up to 80 kilometers per hour (49 mph) and meter-high snowdrifts.
Image: Hendrik Schmidt/dpa/picture alliance
People urged to stay at home
Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer advised people to avoid travelling at the start of the week. On Sunday, rail and road traffic came to a standstill in many cities. Police closed motorways said to be as slippery as glass.
Image: Robert Michael/dpa/picture alliance
Homeless at risk
A woman stands by snow-covered stairs in Berlin. Several states in Germany have been covered with more than 20 centimeters of snow. Homeless people are particularly at risk during the storms. Rescue crews brought several homeless people in North Rhine Westphalia to shelters. In Berlin, protesters called for the reopening of a camp where many homeless people live before it was cleared.
Image: Florian Gaertner/photothek/imago images
Capital blanketed in white
Berlin's iconic Brandenburg gate gets a cleaning during heavy snowfall. Berliners were seen on public transport over the weekend armed with sleds as they headed to hill-tops for a day of tobogganing.
Image: Tobias Schwarz/AFP/Getty Images
Black ice hits central Germany
A woman with an umbrella crosses the road in Hanover, Lower Saxony. The DWD issued its highest warnings for parts of North Rhine-Westphalia, Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt on Saturday. Black ice was also forecast for parts of North Rhine-Westphalia, Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, Thuringia and Saxony.
German weather forecasters on Sunday said that the snowstorm is set to bring even lower temperatures in the coming week, as several parts of Germany were hit by extreme winter weather at the weekend.
DWD, the German Weather Service, had issued an extreme weather warning, saying emergency crews had been put on standby.
DWD spoke of an "extraordinary onset of winter."
The snowstorm has affected northern central parts of Germany the most, with dense snow drifts, causing limited visibility, the DWD said.
Local media reported dozens of injuries and traffic accidents around Germany.
DW correspondent Jared Reed said the streets of Hanover in Lower Saxony appear to be empty. "There aren't many people braving the snow," Reed said.
Several states in Germany have been covered with more than 20 centimeters of snow, with winds as strong as 80 kilometers per hour.
The DWD forecasts more snowfall on Monday, and up to 40 centimeters of snow covering some parts in Germany.
Germany snowed in by extreme winter weather
A major snowstorm caused injuries, accidents, railway and football match cancellations across northern and central Germany. Forecasters say the snowstorm is set to bring even lower temperatures in the upcoming week.
Image: Jens Büttner/dpa/picture alliance
Snow blankets northern, eastern Germany
Pedestrians walk along the Elbe River in Dresden. In its warning, Germany's weather service warned of an "extraordinary onset of winter," and said the snowstorm has affected northern and central parts of Germany the most.
Image: Sebastian Kahnert/dpa/picture alliance
Extreme weather warning issued
A jogger runs close to the Reichstag building in Berlin. DWD, the German Weather Service, issued an extreme weather warning, saying emergency crews have been put on standby across the country.
Image: Christoph Soeder/dpa/picture alliance/dpa
Sled and slide
Adults and children in the eastern state of Saxony enjoy a day out in the snow with winter activities such as sledding and snow boarding. The snow seen here near the town of Altenberg is noticeably tainted by Sahara sand.
Image: Matthias Schrader/AP/picture alliance
Bundesliga games called off
Multiple football games were cancelled on Sunday due to severe weather. The Bundesliga game between Arminia Bielefeld and Werder Bremen was cancelled just hours before it was due to begin, while the second-division game between Paderborn and Heidenheim was also called off.
Image: Arminia Bielefeld/dpa/picture alliance
Rail connections cancelled across Germany
A regional train heads in the direction of Koblenz, in North Rhine-Westphalia. Large portions of Germany's most populous state woke up to a blanket of snowfall. Deutsche Bahn (DB), Germany's train operator, canceled several routes around the country, and has offered refunds in the affected regions.
Image: Fabian Strauch/dpa/picture alliance
Reduced visibility causes accidents
People walk along an avenue in Berlin. The storm, which has caused dense snow drifts and limited visibility, resulted in dozens of injuries and traffic accidents around Germany.
Image: Florian Gaertner/photothek/imago images
Frozen motorways see spike in accidents
A tree branch is frozen is Siegen, in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). Police closed several slippery motorways as hundreds of accidents were reported across the country. In NRW alone, authorities said a total of 222 car accidents had been registered since Saturday.
Image: Leon Kuegeler/REUTERS
Stuck in traffic
Heavy snow fall and powerful wind across Germany has delayed traffic in a number of cities, posing a challenge for drivers trying to make their way around. Winter storms brought up to 32 centimeters (12 inches) of snow, wind gusting up to 80 kilometers per hour (49 mph) and meter-high snowdrifts.
Image: Hendrik Schmidt/dpa/picture alliance
People urged to stay at home
Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer advised people to avoid travelling at the start of the week. On Sunday, rail and road traffic came to a standstill in many cities. Police closed motorways said to be as slippery as glass.
Image: Robert Michael/dpa/picture alliance
Homeless at risk
A woman stands by snow-covered stairs in Berlin. Several states in Germany have been covered with more than 20 centimeters of snow. Homeless people are particularly at risk during the storms. Rescue crews brought several homeless people in North Rhine Westphalia to shelters. In Berlin, protesters called for the reopening of a camp where many homeless people live before it was cleared.
Image: Florian Gaertner/photothek/imago images
Capital blanketed in white
Berlin's iconic Brandenburg gate gets a cleaning during heavy snowfall. Berliners were seen on public transport over the weekend armed with sleds as they headed to hill-tops for a day of tobogganing.
Image: Tobias Schwarz/AFP/Getty Images
Black ice hits central Germany
A woman with an umbrella crosses the road in Hanover, Lower Saxony. The DWD issued its highest warnings for parts of North Rhine-Westphalia, Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt on Saturday. Black ice was also forecast for parts of North Rhine-Westphalia, Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, Thuringia and Saxony.
Deutsche Bahn (DB), Germany's train operator, canceled several routes around the country, and has offered refunds in the affected regions.
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"Due to snow in some parts of Germany, @DB_Presse @DB_Bahn is offering refunds for anyone who wants this weekend for affected regions," DW correspondent William Noah Glucroft wrote on Twitter.
Train connections with the Netherlands were suspended, and passengers said getting out of Berlin or Hamburg was particularly difficult, with many long-distance train journeys impossible due to heavy snow.
Rail links were also cancelled between Hamburg and Hanover, and Hamburg and North Rhine Westphalia, and the fast inter-city train from Bremen to Norddeich Mole was one of several long-distance connections in northern Germany that have been cancelled by Deutsche Bahn.
Police closed numerous slippery motorways as hundreds of accidents have been reported. In some places, cars were stuck in snowdrifts and buses came to a standstill.
Authorities said a total of 222 car accidents had been registered since Saturday across the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
The Bundesliga game between Arminia Bielefeld and Werder Bremen was called off hours before kickoff on Sunday due to a heavy snowstorm.
"Due to the heavy and prolonged snowfall combined with frost, it's not guaranteed that the game can be carried out properly,'' the German Football League (DFL) said in statement. "A new date for the game will be announced shortly.''
The second-division game between Paderborn and Heidenheim was also called off.
Extreme weather to persist
Arctic weather patterns in the north led the DWD to issue its highest warnings for parts of North Rhine-Westphalia, Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt on Saturday.
In Berlin, authorities opened more emergency homeless shelters ahead of the expected cold snap.
Black ice was forecast for parts of North Rhine-Westphalia, Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, Thuringia and Saxony.
Officials said southern Germany would see milder weather owing to low pressure over western Europe.
There were warnings of severe storms, gales and gusting winds near the Alps.
German federal police said people had largely complied with warnings for Saturday and avoided popular tourist destinations.
