The snow and cold weather that has affected much of Spain has left dozens of kilometers of roads closed over the weekend in central parts of the country.

Spanish police and soldiers are working to rescue thousands of people trapped on roads, after heavy snowfall forced them to spend the night in their cars. More than 150 members of the army's military emergencies unit have been deployed to help. Three highways were closed between Segovia and Avila for over an hour. Authorities reopened the highways in both directions as the snowfall weakened. Spain's weather office has issued alerts for 37 provinces.