Heavy snow, freezing rain warnings hamper German travel

Severe weather warnings prompted the cancelation of hundreds of flights at Frankfurt airport, Germany's busiest, as the country braced for heavy snowfall and freezing rain.

At Frankfurt airport, more than 500 flights were canceled on Wednesday, while in Munich over 250 arrivals and departures were canceled. The freezing rain across western and southern Germany also led to countless crashes on icy roads in the early morning hours of Wednesday. The weather service warned of an extreme risk of black ice and heavy snowfall in the affect regions through Thursday.