The accidents are happening on a rolling belt in western Sweden, where the police have had to respond to more than 30 accidents so far today alone, writes Expressen.
– It is clear that there is a lot of snow in many places, says Jens Andersson, spokesperson for the police in the West region of Sweden, to the newspaper.
“Extraordinary situation”
The snow, which has apparently taken many spring-ready Swedes to bed, brings with it long queues, slippery roads and a lot of waiting time.
The police in Region West have now declared that it is an “extraordinary situation”, which means that incidents as a result of the weather will be handled outside of normal police activities.
This should ensure that the police get pooled resources, they write on their website.
SNØFAST: Swedish Johan Holmgren has stood here for many hours. There will probably be more. Photo: Johan Liljeros Holmgren
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The Swedish rescue service and the Swedish Transport Agency are calling for a “crisis meeting” with the County Governor of Västra Götaland.
– The situation is serious, says officer on duty in the Rescue Service, Johan Wahlström, to Nya Lidköpings-Tidningen.
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Now it has arrived
– Smooth as hell
Johan Liljeros Holmgren and his family have been stuck for several hours on the E20, north of Mariestad in Västergötland.
– There is total snow chaos and strong winds. It’s slippery as hell and the windscreen freezes. We have bought an extra window scraper to scrape while we drive, he tells Expressen.
The Swedish Transport Administration advises people to avoid traveling on roads where there are challenges.
HIT: But for now no longer. There is chaos on the road in Sweden. Photo: Johan Liljeros Holmgren / Expressen
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Dagbladet has been given permission to reproduce the pictures and quotes he has given to the newspaper.
Traffic is at a standstill in both directions, according to Holmgren.
– We have driven in many different types of weather, but it has never been this bad before, he tells the newspaper.
Holmgren tells Dagbladet that they have been queuing since 2 p.m. Fortunately, they have had unexpected company in the middle of all the waiting.
– Hugo and I just went out to get some fresh air and on the other side of the road is a friend. A colleague is standing 350 meters further ahead. The world is small, he says.
Swedish police are said to have received several reports of motorists turning and driving the wrong way to get out of the queue.
Robin Johansson, known among other things from “Paradise Hotel”, was with his girlfriend Martine Baardseng in the slalom hill in Sweden, and had a somewhat different trip than expected. Video: Instagram @martinebaardseng / Expressen.
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Coming to Norway
Spokesperson for the police in the East region, Johnny Gustavsson, says that there are “an awful lot of accidents.”
– It seems that it is difficult to accept that you must have changed to summer tyres. This in addition to the fact that the road is smooth, he tells Expressen.
COLD: The cold hasn’t taken its toll yet. This is what the low pressure looks like over Sweden. Screenshot: Windy
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Snowy weather is also expected in Norway in the coming days. The Meteorological Institute has issued a yellow warning for snow for Agder, parts of Eastern Norway and Rogaland, which applies throughout Thursday.
– Around 5-25 cm of snow is expected, mostly in Agder. Near the coast in Agder and Rogaland, the precipitation may locally come as sleet, says the warning.
