Snow wipes out third of flights at London Heathrow
London (AFP) Feb 5, 2012 - London Heathrow Airport cancelled 30 percent of its flights Sunday to cope with heavy snowfall overnight and possible freezing fog at Europe's busiest passenger air hub.

Heathrow said up to 10 centimetres (four inches) of snow were expected to fall which, without reductions to the flight schedule, would cause major disruption at the west London airport.

"We deeply regret any disruption caused to passengers by the cold weather," said Heathrow's chief operating officer Normand Boivin.

"Reducing the flight schedule means we can fly as many people as possible and return the airport to normal as quickly as possible."

The changes could affect around 400 flights.

Heathrow, the world's busiest international passenger airport, said it expected that more than 70 percent of its customers would be able to fly as airlines transfer passengers between flights.

Most of Britain was on amber alert, the Met Office national weather service's second-highest severe weather warning.

The Met Office forecast that the snow would ease over London and southeast England early Sunday, after an icy and foggy start.

Britain suffered its coldest night of the winter so far overnight Friday, with temperatures dipping to minus 12.4 degrees Celsius (9.7 degrees Fahrenheit) in South Newington in Oxfordshire, southern England.

Church Fenton in Yorkshire, northern England, recorded 16 centimetres of snow.

At the capital's other airports, London Gatwick, Britain's second busiest air hub, said all 270 of its scheduled departures got away Saturday.

London Stansted shut its runway briefly Saturday for snow clearing but said it was expecting normal flight operations Sunday.

London Luton warned passengers that departures and arrivals might be subject to delay or cancellation due to the weather.

Birmingham Airport, central England's main air hub, had to close its runway, forcing a number of flights to be cancelled or diverted as it too cleared the snow.

On the London Underground train network -- much of which runs above ground -- the weather caused the closure of the entire Jubilee Line, while parts of other lines were suspended, causing difficulties for those looking to get home after a Saturday night out.

London Mayor Boris Johnson said: "Across all our roads and rails, hundreds of workers are on standby to ensure that, should we receive a mega deposit of snow, we are in a position to keep the capital moving."

A string of Saturday's football fixtures were called off, as were some horse race meetings.

The army was called in to help clear snow from the streets of Rome after the heaviest snowfall in 27 years saw up to 60 centimetres (23.6 inches) of snow blanket the city's historic centre and suburbs.

There were reports of electricity, water and heating blackouts flooded in several regions across Italy, while traffic in the capital struggled on icy roads and local and governmental authorities blamed each other for the crisis.

A homeless Ukrainian woman was found dead in her sleeping bag in a shack in the suburbs of Rome, while a 62-year-old man was killed when his shed roof collapsed on him under the weight of snow in the nearby town of Frosinone.

A 46-year-old woman died earlier in Avellino, near Naples in southern Italy, after a greenhouse roof loaded with snow gave way on top of her.

A homeless Brazilian man, 56, was rescued after he sought shelter from the snow along with his dog in an abandoned car, and was treated for hypothermia.

While tourist sites such as the Colosseum remained closed for a second day, some people braved the cold to take advantage of the rare snowfall to go cross-country skiing in the city's large Villa Borghese park.

Grinning people in ski suits larked around with sledges and snowboards all around the eternal city, while children tobogganed down white slopes.

Hundreds of people were meanwhile plucked to safety after a ferry caught in a snow storm hit a breakwater, causing panic among those who feared a repeat of a cruise ship tragedy in the area last month which killed 32.

No injuries were reported aboard the ferry, which had a 25-metre (80-foot) hole torn in the ship's side above the waterline shortly after setting off from the port of Civitavecchia near Rome.

Emergency services freed people trapped in cars and trains in freezing temperatures. Over 150 passengers were stuck in a train for 12 hours overnight in the Abruzzo region while several other trains experience severe delays.

Rescue workers also freed 20 people blocked in their cars overnight near Rome, and two people were taken to hospital. Over 50 lorry drivers slept in their stranded vehicles after conditions made it impossible to drive.

Tuscany region ordered all emergency services to be on high alert as residents in Florence suffered a lengthy blackout and temperatures dropped to minus 10 degrees Celsius (14 degrees Fahrenheit) in parts of the region.

In Venice, sections of the lagoon froze over.

Trains were severely delayed between Florence and Bologna and more than 40 flights were cancelled from Rome's Fiumicino airport.

The civil protection agency issued a weather alert, forecasting more snow Sunday in the centre and south of Italy, and icy temperatures and winds in the north.