PARIS: A blast of Siberian weather sent temperatures plunging across much of Europe Tuesday, carpeting palm-lined beaches in snow and prompting warnings for the homeless and elderly people. The Red Cross, which has set up emergency teams across Europe, urged people to keep an eye on neighbours and relatives. Paris authorities counted 3,000 rough-sleepers in the city’s first-ever homeless census this month, warning it was likely significantly underestimated. Austria’s ZAMG weather office said that even with the current cold snap, this winter had still been unusually mild and wet. “If you go skating on natural ice, it is advisable to take a rescue rope,” skater Paul Steehouder told the NRC newspaper.

Source: New Strait Times February 27, 2018 18:11 UTC