The official beginning of spring was Wednesday marked by a cold spell in northern Spain, where about 60 villages were isolated by snow and ice in the Palencia region, news reports said. The villages had a total 5,000 residents. More than 1,000 lorries were stuck on a road near Burgos. Many Basque roads were unusable, and some rail links were suspended. About 30 mountain passes were blocked by snow, dpa reported. Several inland flights were cancelled, and a plane coming in from Dublin was diverted from Vitoria to Santander. Many schools remained closed.
