Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Heavy snowfall hits Moscow as Russian media report disruption on roads and at airports

Russian officials and media say that heavy snowfall that hit Moscow has disrupted traffic on roads and flights in and out of three airports

Via AP news wire
Monday 04 December 2023 07:26 EST

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Heavy snowfall has hit the Russian capital, disrupting traffic on roads and flights in and out of three Moscow airports, officials and media reported on Monday.

The snowfall that began Sunday and continued overnight has brought an additional 23 centimeters (nine inches) to already high levels of snow in Moscow, according to deputy mayor Pyotr Biryukov. About 135,000 people and 18,000 pieces of equipment were involved in the snow-clearing effort.

Nearly 200 trucks got stuck in the snow over the past 24 hours, and required assistance from road traffic workers, the Moscow transport department reported.

A total of 53 flights were delayed and five more were canceled on Monday morning in three out of four Moscow airports, Russian business daily Vedomosti reported. Most of the delays occurred at the Sheremetyevo airport north of the capital. The two airports to the south, Domodedovo and Vnukovo, also experienced delays, the report said. At the Zhukovsky airport southeast of the city, flights were departing from Moscow on schedule, according to Vedomosti.

Heavy snow, as well as temperatures below -50 C (-58 F), were also reported in the Siberian region of Yakutia. In the neighboring region of Magadan, similar temperatures were expected in the coming days.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in