Spain mobilized the army in the north of the country to assist hundreds of travelers facing a severe winter storm in reaching safe areas.

About 500 vehicles, including trucks, were stranded in a traffic jam stretching for a kilometer on the road between the towns of Soria and Agria near the city of Zaragoza on Friday evening due to heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures, according to television reports.

The state-owned RTVE television channel reported that temperatures in the Castilla y León autonomous region dropped to below minus 10 degrees in the highlands during the night.

In Zaragoza, operations at the airport were temporarily halted due to snow on the runway. There was also traffic congestion in other parts of Spain due to snow and ice or due to heavy rains, such as the autonomous region of Extremadura in southwestern Spain.