Freezing rain continued to create significant disruptions across parts of eastern Germany. By Friday morning, severe weather warnings from the national weather service remained in effect for a broad stretch extending from the Baltic Sea coast in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern down to Berlin. At the capital’s airport, Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER), no takeoffs or landings were initially possible due to the weather, according to the airport operator.
Since Thursday evening, operations at the large airport near Berlin have been completely halted. Because the runways were glassy and dangerously slick, the airport suspended all flight operations at around 7:30 p.m., and all departures and arrivals have been canceled since then. Travelers were urged to check the status of their flights before heading to the airport.
Public transport in Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania and the state of Brandenburg was also severely affected. In many districts around Berlin, bus services were fully suspended on Thursday evening due to sudden ice and black ice formation. In many areas, this continued to be the case on Friday morning, including the district of Prignitz in Brandenburg and the Mecklenburg Lake District in Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania.
In other districts, such as Ostprignitz–Ruppin, bus services resumed slowly on a few initial routes on Friday morning. Local authorities in Ostprignitz–Ruppin urged people to avoid spending time outdoors whenever possible due to “a high risk of icy conditions in the region” and called on drivers to adapt their behavior to the hazardous road conditions.
Numerous car accidents had already occurred on the roads. According to police, there were repeated accidents on Thursday on Highway 10 near Potsdam in Brandenburg due to icy surfaces. A total of 19 people suffered minor injuries. Police reported around 15 accidents on frozen roads in the districts of Vorpommern–Rügen and the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte in Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania. Many incidents resulted only in vehicle damage, though several people were slightly injured. Police in Neubrandenburg also advised residents to avoid unnecessary driving.
At BER, airport crews were unable to keep up with de-icing the glassy runways, according to a spokesperson. “We are doing our utmost,” she told AFP. However, new freezing rain immediately erased any progress made. It remained unclear when and in what form flight operations could resume. Flight cancellations and delays were expected, and decisions regarding individual flights rested with the airlines.
According to the national weather service, the region most affected stretched between the Baltic Sea, Prignitz, and Altmark, where freezing rain and ice accumulation were reported. Officials said that conditions in northeastern Germany were expected to improve only slowly over the course of the day. Other parts of the country were also expected to face freezing rain and dangerous ice.
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