National
Wintery conditions complicate the way home for Spanish drivers
By h.b.
Mar 23, 2008 - 9:15 PM

Wintery conditions are set to complicate the way home for thousands of Easter holiday travellers in Spain, with fresh snow falls affecting the north of the country. 3.5 million journeys home are expected across the country.

Up to 8pm on Sunday night, there had been 45 fatal accidents across the country, resulting in 54 deaths and 14 serious injuries, according to the DGT traffic authority. The number of fatalities is 45 fewer than it was in Easter 2007.

A snow alert was in place across seven regions on Sunday, including Asturias, Cantabria, Castilla y León, Navarra, Galicia, Basque Country and Cataluña.

One of the most serious accidents was at Cogollos in Burgos on Saturday lunchtime when at least two people died and four more, including two children, were seriously injured when two vehicles were in a collision at the 226 km. point of the A1. And on Sunday, three people died in an accident on the Ma-1120 road on Mallorca, when their car crashed head-on into a tree. A fourth passenger in the car was seriously injured, and lost an arm in the crash.

The return home comes a day later for those in Baleares, Cataluña. Valencia, Navarra, Basque Country and La Rioja, as Monday is also a bank holiday in those areas.