Photos: Record snowfall disrupts life in Madrid

Schools, courts and museums were closed throughout Madrid on January 11, two days after central Spain was hit by a massive snowstorm. Officials have asked people to stay at home if possible after Storm Filomena dumped between 20-30 centimetres of snow on Madrid on January 9, the heaviest snowfall since 1971. The storm killed at least three people as it swept through Spain and kept emergency services workers and army snowploughs busy, freeing 2,500 drivers trapped in their vehicles. ...read more

Share Via

Copy Link

1 / 10

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jan 12, 2021 11:34 AM IST

A person walks past fallen branches in Madrid amid heavy snowfall on January 9. The Spanish capital is trying to get back on its feet after a 50-year record snowfall that paralysed large parts of central Spain over the weekend. It has now led to icy weather that is hampering the rollout of the much-needed vaccination against the coronavirus.(Gabriel Bouys / AFP)

2 / 10

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jan 12, 2021 11:34 AM IST

A plough clears snow in downtown Madrid on January 10. Nearly 700 roads remain affected throughout Spain, with winter tires or chains needed on roughly half of them, AP reported quoting transit authority DGT.(Manu Fernandez / AP)

3 / 10

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jan 12, 2021 11:34 AM IST

A woman slides down steps outside the Las Ventas bullring in Madrid on January 10. With a sharp drop in temperatures on January 11 and frost freezing much of the snow, which reached more than 50 centimeters in some urban areas, authorities are calling on people to avoid all but essential trips out of their homes.(Gabriel Bouys / AFP)

4 / 10

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jan 12, 2021 11:34 AM IST

People out in the snow outside the Royal Palace in Madrid on January 9. In Madrid, authorities are calling on citizens to avoid using the few lanes that civil protection and military battalions, aided by snowplows and bulldozers, have managed to clear for ambulances and emergency vehicles.(Gabriel Bouys / AFP)

5 / 10

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jan 12, 2021 11:34 AM IST

A man snowboards down the Gran Via avenue in downtown Madrid on January 10. Much of the city's main services remained closed on January 11, including the main wholesale market, although some supermarkets and newsstands opened for the first time in three days.(Manu Fernandez / AP)

6 / 10

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jan 12, 2021 11:34 AM IST

People holding umbrellas walk amid a heavy snowfall in Madrid on January 9. The underground train system has become the only viable way for people to commute to work. Lacking enough salt and snowploughs, officials had as on January 11 only managed to clear main roads of snow and fallen tree branches, with most pavements, smaller roads and residential areas still covered.(Gabriel Bouys / AFP)

7 / 10

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jan 12, 2021 11:34 AM IST

A man jumps over a snow-covered street in Madrid on January 10. The authorities are worried about the prospect of snow turning to ice, with temperatures expected to fall to up to minus 13 (9 Fahrenheit) on January 12.(Susana Vera / REUTERS)

8 / 10

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jan 12, 2021 11:34 AM IST

A person holding bags walks through a snow-covered street after heavy snowfall in Madrid on January 11. The Spanish government has insisted the travel chaos will not affect the distribution of the coronavirus vaccine, with 350,000 doses due to be rolled out nationwide on January 11.(Sergio Perez / REUTERS)

9 / 10

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jan 12, 2021 11:34 AM IST

A worker shovels snow from the entrance of a building after heavy snowfall in Madrid on January 11. Throughout the weekend, people had been responding to calls to help clear vital paths in their neighbourhoods to allow access to hospitals and neighbourhood health centers.(Sergio Perez / REUTERS)

10 / 10

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jan 12, 2021 11:34 AM IST

People using walking sticks to wade through the snow in Madrid on January 10. Most residents have heeded the government's call to stay at home, with the capital's streets all but deserted and quiet, except for the sound of shovels scraping snow and ice.(Susana Vera / HT Photo)