Stranded Air Travelers, One Traffic Fatality, Over Last Weekend

It was a frustrating weekend for those attempting to drive to, and those landing in, Keflavík International Airport this past weekend. Unfortunately, severe weather conditions resulted in one traffic fatality on the road leading to the airport.

Some 4,000 people were left stranded at Keflavík International Aiport late last night, Vísir reports, many of them there from arriving flights. Powerful winds in fact kept many passengers on their arriving planes for hours before they were permitted to disembark.

As can be seen from the photos on the Vísir piece, a great many people opted to sleep on the floors of the airport. A great many more found shelter elsewhere, as this post from Red Cross Iceland attests. About 500 people were housed in a temporary shelter in Reykjanesbær last night.

There has been one reported fatality from yesterday’s weather, this one being on Reykjanesbraut, the road which connects the capital area to Reykjanes municipalities and the airport, Fréttablaðið reports. A traffic accident occurred when a man driving a car collided with a snowplough at about 21:22 last night. This road was closed due to poor weather for many hours last night, and was not opened until midnight.

As reported, there is another severe storm bearing down on Iceland today, which is expected to last until Wednesday morning. Travel is not recommended, and cancelled flights are highly likely. Check with your airline for more information.