Video: Snowfall, icy roads spell trouble on Netherlands roads; One dead in Rotterdam

Accidents occurred in several locations across the country during the overnight hours from late on Thursday into Friday morning. Snow, hail, freezing rain, wind gusts, and icy roads caused problems all over the Netherlands, according to infrastructure agency Rijkswaterstaat, motorist association ANWB, and several regional news outlets. At least one of the incidents was fatal, with police confirming a 22-year-old man died when his car crashed into a viaduct pillar in Rotterdam.

The second day of the New Year was not expected to be busy on the roadways, and Rijkswaterstaat warned earlier that salt would be spread more sporadically. The agency's website showed more salt trucks put on the road from 3 a.m. onwards, but drivers were warned that the weather conditions could cause dangerous situations in many places in the coming days, even though gritting is in place.

The A5 motorway was closed in both directions between IJmuiden and the Raasdorp interchange because a truck jackknifed shortly after 6 a.m. Although Rijkswaterstaat and the police would not immediately confirm say whether the accident was related to the slippery conditions, the agency's own photos from the scene showed tire tracks in a thin layer of snow alongside a smashed section of guardrail.

A spokesperson for the ANWB said that the truck on the A5 crashed through the guardrail and came to a stop in the other lane. "It's blocking everything there now," the spokesperson said. Rijkswaterstaat confirmed the guardrail needs to be replaced, and that traffic was being diverted to the A9, A4, and A10. The ANWB expects the A5 inbound towards Amsterdam to reopen first, followed by the other direction.

It was unlikely the A5 would be reopened before 1 p.m. The busy highway runs past the western portion of Schiphol Airport, serving as a connection between the A4 and A9 motorways, and the A10 ring road around Amsterdam.

On the A28, a car rolled over and landed upside-down on the shoulder near Houten just before 1 a.m. RTV Utrecht reported. About 90 minutes later, another driver lost control of their car just past the Zeist exit, the broadcaster.

A car also skidded off the road on the N279 in Helmond. This likely occurred due to slippery conditions, according to Omroep Brabant.

Snow also remained on the A73 in the southeast of the country. This could be seen Friday morning between Venray and Venlo.

In Rotterdam, a 22-year-old driver died when his car collided with a pillar at a viaduct on President Rooseveltweg in Rotterdam-Terbregge. Police could not determine whether the slippery conditions played a role.

The crash happened around 2:00 a.m. Emergency services attempted to resuscitate the man, according to a police spokesperson.

Rijkswaterstaat had issued warnings on Thursday to say the fleet of salt trucks would not be used as effectively as normal on Thursday night, warning drivers overnight to adjust their driving style to maintain extra distance, or delay their journeys. Still, salt trucks spread nearly 5.6 million kilograms of salt on Dutch motorways and national roads between 7 p.m. on Thursday and 9 a.m. on Friday.

The salt used overnight was more than 22 percent of the 25 million kilograms of salt dumped on Dutch roads since October. The fleet of Rijkswaterstaat grit trucks drove an estimated 61,000 kilometers during the most recent overnight period.

Dutch meteorological office KNMI previously said slippery conditions due to wintry showers should be expected in the west, central, and east of the country during the overnight hours. A weather warning was already in effect Thursday evening for the provinces of Noord- and Zuid-Holland, Utrecht, Overijssel, Gelderland, and Flevoland.

A separate Code Yellow weather warning was issued nationwide from early Friday night, with an expectation it would end on Saturday evening. The alert was sent for slippery conditions due to snow, hail, and wet, slippery sections of road.