Eight die as heavy snow sweeps across Europe

HEAVY snow and sub-zero temperatures swept across Europe, killing at least eight homeless people in Poland, closing major airports in Britain and Switzerland and causing hundreds of highway accidents.

Gatwick, London’s second largest airport, and Geneva were forced to shut yesterday as staff struggled to clear runways of snow, along with Edinburgh airport in Scotland and Lyon-Bron in southeastern France.

Eurocontrol, the central air control agency, reported severe flight delays in northern Spain, southern Germany and Austria.