Moscow experienced its heaviest snowfall in 56 years: on January 9, 22 millimeters of precipitation fell, nearly 42% of the city’s average for January. The Balkan cyclone Francis also affected St. Petersburg, Vladivostok, and other Russian cities, disrupting transport and airport operations.
The most visible impact was at Sheremetyevo Airport. On the evening of January 9, about 3,000 people gathered in the arrival areas of terminals B and C, waiting hours for their luggage. Some passengers left without their belongings, others spent the night in the terminal, and National Guard personnel were sent to the lost baggage desk.
“People are losing their minds: they are arguing, some are sleeping on the floor. Water is being handed out, but over seven hours they only gave out pies. The baggage search desk has a huge line, and there is no information,” a passenger arriving from Kaliningrad told Ostorozhno, Moskva.
Because of what the airport described as “abnormal weather conditions,” Sheremetyevo temporarily stopped accepting incoming flights. Some aircraft were diverted to alternate airports, and at least 200 flights were delayed or canceled. Restrictions were initially set until 8:00 a.m., then extended until 10:00 a.m., and lifted at 12:00 p.m. Moscow time. Some passengers also complained that after landing they remained on board for hours because of a shortage of boarding stairs.
The storm also disrupted the city itself. Trams stopped running in parts of Moscow, traffic on sections of the MKAD ring road was nearly paralyzed, and a traffic jam up to 23 kilometers long formed on Yaroslavskoye Highway after a chain of crashes and trucks getting stuck on inclines. According to the outlet, some drivers spent up to eight hours in the jam; warming points and evacuation to temporary accommodation were organized for them.
In St. Petersburg, a powerful blizzard began overnight into January 10, and snow cover reached 26 centimeters by Saturday morning, according to the city’s chief forecaster Aleksandr Kolesov. Heavy snowfall also affected Pulkovo Airport, where some flights were diverted and many departures were delayed.
In Vladivostok, snow fell for more than 12 hours after starting at 3:00 a.m. By midday on January 10, the daily precipitation norm had already been exceeded, and forecasters said snowfall would continue until 3:00 a.m. on January 11. The blizzard severely hindered traffic: roads were rapidly covered again, snow-clearing equipment struggled, and residents helped push buses and cars out of drifts.
The snowfall also affected other regions. In Arkhangelsk, a Superjet 100 slid beyond the runway because of slippery conditions. Transport and airport disruptions were also reported in Kemerovo, Novokuznetsk, Magnitogorsk, Perm, Sochi, Chelyabinsk, and Vladivostok.