Heavy snow disrupts flights in UK, Germany

Heavy snow and freezing rain brought widespread disruption across Europe on Sunday, particularly in the UK and Germany, with several major airports forced to suspend flights.

With the weather set to stay inclement on Sunday in the UK, there are concerns that many rural communities, particularly in the north of England, could be cut off.

The National Grid, which oversees the country’s electricity network, said it had been working to restore power after outages across the country. The company’s live map shows power cuts in Birmingham in central England, Bristol in the west and Cardiff in Wales.

Many sporting events have already been postponed, though the heavyweight Premier League fixture between rivals Liverpool and Manchester United is on, following an inspection at Liverpool’s home ground of Anfield and of local conditions.

Liverpool’s John Lennon Airport and Manchester Airport had to close runways, but both appeared poised to reopen them by late Sunday morning. Leeds Bradford Airport, however, said it had closed its runway on Sunday morning. — PTI