Self-employed truck driver Niclas Nordström found himself stuck in snow on Sweden’s E22 motorway for 20 hours this past Wednesday and Thursday, describing the conditions as the worst he has faced in his 30-year career.
Nordström, who has operated his own road freight business since the 1990s, had expected that the traffic blockage would be cleared when he entered the E22 on Wednesday. He quickly realized his mistake along with about 1,000 other drivers when he came to a standstill near Linderöd at approximately 1:45 PM. “I assumed the police had already redirected traffic,” the 58-year-old told The Local. “But I didn’t think enough about it. With a bit more quick action, this could have been avoided, and the queues wouldn’t have been so long.”
As a powerful blizzard struck the area, around 1,000 vehicles were immobilized on the E22 between Hörby and Kristianstad. The Armed Forces were called in to assist, helping to evacuate stranded individuals and providing food and water to those who remained trapped.
Nordström’s truck is equipped with a day cab, meaning it lacks a sleeping area, forcing him to sleep seated in the driver’s seat. However, he acknowledged that his situation was better than that of those in passenger vehicles. On his way to Lund in Skåne and then home to Olofström in Blekinge county, he found himself without food or medicine, relying on the goodwill of others for help.
During his time stuck, he met a couple from Holland who provided him with coffee and a sandwich after hearing about his hunger. He spent the night monitoring the Swedish Transport Administration’s website for updates on when the road would reopen, only to see the estimated time repeatedly pushed further back—from 8 PM to midnight and then to 2 AM, before finally being delayed until 2 PM the next day.
Eventually, at around 10 AM, the Dutchman he met got assistance from a local farmer, who cleared a three-meter-wide path in the snow, allowing both of them to leave the motorway. They drove against the flow of traffic, with their warning lights flashing, until they found a navigable road.
Nordström primarily drives in southern Skåne and Blekinge and noted that he had never experienced snow conditions as severe as those he faced on Wednesday. “I have never encountered anything like this in 30 years of driving. The last time Skåne saw such treacherous weather was back in 1979, when the entire region was covered in snow.”
