Manchester Airport shuts runways due to 'significant snow' as travellers sent warning
Share:
Passengers have been warned as Manchester Airport was forced to temporarily close it runways, as "significant" levels of snow continues to fall over the country. Yellow snow and ice warnings are in place in the region as people are warned of travel chaos on the roads, railways and in the skies. Earlier, Manchester Airport posted on social media to warn its passengers the runways are currently closed.
They reopened around an hour later, although passengers were told they may still face delays. The airport said in an update: "Our runways are now open but as a result of the earlier closure, some departures and arrivals may still experience delays. "Please check with your airline for the for the latest flight information and allow extra time for your journey today. We would like to thank our teams for their hard work in getting the runways operational again.
"The safety of our passengers remains our top priority. Thank you for your understanding and patience.". Videos posted online showed vehicles working to remove the top layer of snow as it looks to continue operations. In an earlier statement, the airport said: "Our runways are temporarily closed due to significant levels of snow, as our teams work hard to clear them as quickly as possible.".
The decision was met with derision by some passengers. One said: "Significant levels for barely a sheet's worth - what a joke. By this logic, Nordic countries should cease operations altogether in winter.". Several weather warnings are in place across the country today as temperatures plummeted to as low as -8C in the North West with many other regions seeing the mercury fall below freezing. Met Office forecasters recorded lows of -6C in Glasgow, -2C at Belfast International Airport and a chilly -7C in Sennybridge, in Wales.
