The self-employed truck driver Niclas Nordström was snowbound on Sweden’s E22 motorway for 20 hours on Wednesday and Thursday, experiencing what he described to The Local as the worst weather conditions of his three-decade career.
Nordström, who has been operating his own road freight business since the 1990s, admitted that he mistakenly thought the blocked traffic would be cleared when he took the E22 on Wednesday. He, along with around 1,000 other drivers, realized his error when they came to a standstill near Linderöd around 1:45 PM.
“The cause of the jam had occurred much earlier, so I simply assumed the police had already rerouted the traffic. I didn’t think it through. If there had been a bit more prompt action, this situation could have been avoided, and the queues wouldn’t have been so lengthy,” the 58-year-old shared with The Local.
Up to 1,000 vehicles were immobilized on the E22 between Hörby and Kristianstad due to a severe blizzard, prompting the Armed Forces to assist with evacuating drivers and providing food and water to those trapped.
Nordström’s truck features only a day cab, meaning there was no bed, and he had to sleep sitting up at the wheel. Nonetheless, he considered himself better off than those in regular passenger cars. On his journey to Lund in Skåne and then back to his home in Olofström in Blekinge county, he lacked food and medication and had to depend on external help.
“There were a variety of people stranded. I formed a friendship with a couple from Holland who assisted me the next day. I expressed to them how hungry I was, and they graciously invited me in for coffee and a sandwich,” Nordström recounted.
During the night, he monitored the Swedish Transport Administration’s website for updates on when the road would reopen. “Each time the reopening time was pushed back. It started at 8 PM, then midnight, then 2 AM, and finally 2 PM the next day,” he said.
Ultimately, around 10 AM, the Dutchman received assistance from a local farmer, who created a three-meter-wide gap in the snow, allowing them both to exit the motorway. They then drove against traffic down the opposite lane, using their hazard lights, until they reached a road that was passable.
“We both made it through the opening together, driving against the flow, but there was no risk because there was no traffic. We wouldn’t have escaped without taking that initiative; otherwise, we’d still be stuck there,” Nordström noted. Having primarily driven in the southern counties of Skåne and Blekinge, he had never faced snow conditions as severe as those he encountered on Wednesday. “I’ve never experienced anything like this in 30 years. Such extreme weather hasn’t hit Skåne since 1979, when the entire region was buried in snow,” he concluded.
