Naples has been hit it heaviest snow in half a century as a blast of Siberian weather continued to send temperatures plunging across Europe.
The snowfall led to the closure of the city’s airport and transport in the city was severely disrupted while schools were forced to close.
An inaccurate forecast meant that the city’s civil emergency department had not initially ordered the closure of its schools.
A couple brave the snow in Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples. The city has seen its heaviest snowfall in half a century
Snow is clear from a street in the Camaldoli’s Hill, Naples. Residents have been told not to leave their homes unless it is ‘strictly necessary’
Neapolitans taking part in a snowball fight at Maschio Angioino during the cold snap that has hit the southern Italian city
The ruined city of Pompei with a snow covered Mount Vesuvius in the background
Snow lies on the ground in Pompei. The blast of cold air has now hit the southern Mediterranean
Snow covers the area around Maschio Angioino during cold weather in Naples
Naples’ education department said the inaction was in contrast to the ‘copious snowfall’, which has ‘whitewashed the city’, the Italian Insider reported.
The city’s mayor has advised residents of the southern Italian port only to leave their homes ‘if strictly necessary’.
Naples’ Capodichino airport was closed for around 90 minutes on Tuesday morning due to poor visibility caused by the snow while bus, tram, and train traffic was also affected.
A rare snowstorm brought Rome its first snowfall in six years and disrupted transport, shut down schools and prompted authorities to call in the army to help clear the streets.
The Italian capital’s first snowfall since February 2012 saw about three to four centimetres settling on the ground on Sunday.
A driver in Naples fitting snow chains to his car (left) while others (right) walked through the snow that fell in the Camaldoli’s Hill area of the city
A blanket of snow forced the closure of Naples’ Capodichino airport, which was forced to close for 90 minutes
Local people came out to glimpse the unusual site of snow on the city’s seafront
People playing in the snow in Naples. Schools across the city were forced to close because of the weather
A woman out in the snow taking a picture in Piazza del Plebiscit. Schools in the city will be closed for nine days because of the snow and Italy’s general election
Schools were closed in the city on Monday as local authorities opened several train stations as emergency shelters for the homeless.
British and American students were captured on camera as they took part in a snowball fight, singing their respective national anthems as they pelted each other with snowballs in St. Peters Square in the Vatican.
Elsewhere in Italy, the snow led to the closure of many schools and daycare centres, to the consternation of parents already preparing for closures next week linked to this weekend’s general election.
Public anger was also growing over the disruptions to rail services across the country, as travellers learned that many track switches did not have defrosting equipment, meaning they had to be dug out by hand.
And a driver in Turin got a fright when a stalactite broke off from an overhead bridge and shattered his windshield – though he managed to keep control of his vehicle.
The icy weather is in stark contrast to conditions in the Arctic itself, which is experiencing an ‘off-the-charts’ heatwave this week, according to the European Geosciences Institute.
Meteorologists have documented temperatures above freezing in some parts of the Arctic, causing astonishment among many scientists.
At least five deaths were reported in Poland alone on Monday as the mercury dropped to minus 16 Celsius (minus 4 Fahrenheit) overnight in Warsaw.
Sculptor Francesca Antonello moulds snow into a face as people look out towards the ancient Roman Forum covered in snow
A view of Rome’s snow-capped skyline, with the Monument of the Unknown Soldier seen at right, after snowfall on Monday
Tourists from across the world came together to play with the snow in the iconic St. Peter Square in the Vatican on Monday
That brought the number of Polish deaths from freezing to 53 since November 1, and temperatures are expected to remain below minus 12 Celsius across the country Tuesday, with the cold accentuated by a biting wind.
In Lithuania, temperatures dropped to as low as minus 26 degrees Celsius overnight, and one suspected death of a man from freezing was reported in the capital Vilnius.
One of the coldest points overnight was at Glattalp in Switzerland, where the temperature fell to -38 Celsius – extreme even for the high-altitude area (1,850 metres), according to the ATS news agency.
In France, which has remained frigid but dry during the cold snap, forecasters warned of heavy snow across much of the country starting Wednesday – though spring-like temperatures would soon follow.
On Tuesday, residents of Ajaccio on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica woke up to some 15 centimetres of snow on the beach, something not seen since 1986.
At least three people have died during the cold snap in France.
Across the continent, authorities have been opening emergency shelters and increasing relief efforts for the homeless.
The mayor of Etterbeek in Belgium said those sleeping rough would be forcibly detained if they refused to go to shelters, citing the ‘major risk’ from exposure to the cold.
In Berlin, rising fears for homeless people led officials to open an additional 100 beds, with the city’s shelters, now with a total of 1,200 beds, more than 90 percent full, RBB public radio reported.