The self-employed truck driver Niclas Nordström was stranded for 20 hours on Sweden’s E22 motorway due to heavy snowfall, reporting that it was the worst weather he has faced in his 30-year career.
Nordström, who has operated his own road freight business since the 1990s, had mistakenly assumed that traffic congestion would have been resolved by the time he took the E22 on Wednesday. He realized his error along with around 1,000 other drivers when they all came to a standstill near Linderöd around 1:45 PM.
“The cause of the traffic jam had occurred much earlier, so I thought the police would have already redirected cars to alternate routes,” the 58-year-old explained. “In hindsight, I wasn’t thinking clearly. A bit more quick-thinking from everyone involved could have prevented such long queues.”
As a blizzard swept through the area, about 1,000 vehicles were left immobilized on the E22 between Hörby and Kristianstad. Authorities enlisted the help of the Armed Forces to assist with evacuations and to deliver food and water to those still trapped.
Nordström’s truck is fitted with a day cab, lacking a bed, which meant he had to sleep upright at the wheel. Despite this, he felt better off than those stuck in passenger vehicles. However, as he was headed to Lund in Skåne before returning home to Olofström, he didn’t have any food or medicine onboard and had to depend on help from others.
“I met a couple from Holland who were very kind. I shared that I was really hungry, and they invited me in for coffee and a sandwich,” he recounted. He spent the night checking the Swedish Transport Administration’s website, which continuously pushed back updates on when the road would reopen.
“It kept getting delayed. Initially, it was set for 8 PM, then midnight, followed by 2 AM, and eventually 2 PM the next day,” he shared. Eventually, around 10 AM, a local farmer assisted the Dutchman in clearing a three-meter-wide path through the snow, allowing them to exit the motorway. The two of them then drove against traffic, using their hazard lights until they found a usable road.
“We both managed to drive out through that opening, even if it meant going the wrong way. Thankfully, there was no traffic, so it wasn’t risky. If we hadn’t taken the initiative, we could still be stuck there,” he said. With most of his experience in the southern counties of Skåne and Blekinge, Nordström noted he had never seen such dire snow conditions before.
“In my 30 years of driving, I have never encountered anything like this. The last time Skåne experienced such harsh weather was around 1979 when it was completely buried in snow,” he concluded.
