Have I ever seen a newspaper so full of snow related news than this one
right
now?
http://www.fedrelandsvennen.no/
see also:
http://www.aftenposten.no/english/ or
http://bt.dk

It started on Wedensday and have continued ever since.
Very cold air from a high over Finland/western Russia collided with a humid
low over
the UK/North Sea.
Almost unprecedented amounts of snow combined with strong winds have closed
main and local roads in the Sørlandet area of Norway.
The main road between Kristiansand and Grimstad was closed for a long period
on
Wedensday/Thursday mainly because of trucks having bad tires for the
weather.
Stuck trucks made it impossible for the snow-plows to hold the road open.
Thousand of people got stuck in cars and the only way to come to their
rescue was
with snowscooters! Quite unprecedented also for Norway.

The snowfall has not ceased, and large shopping centres must close because
of threats to the building and lack of customers. Many smaller buildings
have collapsed.
Elderly people snowed in in their houses. Petrol, post, schools,
powerservices etc. have
suffered in the continuos snowrelated difficulties.

Bjørn Sørheim,
in Norway (not in this area)