Kukës-Tropojë, snow isolates northeast Albania
14/04/2011 16:00
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All northeast Albania has been covered by heavy snowfall that started from Wednesday afternoon and continued for the following night.
The snow was 35 centimeters thick only a few minutes after it had started, halting the vehicle movement at the national road Kukës-Tiranë, near the Kalimashi tunnel.
Hundreds of vehicles remained on the road from 17:00 to 22:00, without being able to move, while many other cars have been damaged.
Some freight trucks sled across the road blocking also the movement of the snow cleaning machines. This situation went on for many hours, until the road was finally opened and the traffic started moving.
This morning had no similar events on the national road Kukës-Tirana, but some roads at Tropoje and in the Kukës commune remain blocked.
The communes of Arren, Kalis, Grykë-Çaj and Zapod in the Kukës district have also been blocked by the snow.
The roads that are still blocked in the Tropoja district are those of Valbona Valley and the road through the Lekbibaj commune, where the snow thickness surpassed 50 centimeters.
The uncommon snowfall has now stopped, but the residents are facing low temperatures of -3° Celsius, which have created icy layers on the asphalt, hampering the vehicle movement.
Beside the problems on the traffic, the snow storm has also damaged the power lines.
Kukës and nearby villages were left without electrical power for five hours during the night. Some other villages in Tropoja are still remaining without electrical power, due to some wooden electric posts that fell on the ground.
The unusual meteorological situation for this season has also damaged agriculture, destroying sowings and fruit trees. A similar situation has also been reported from several mountainous regions in the Diber District.
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