In the Madrid area, rescuers reached 1,500 people trapped in cars, while police broke up a big fight with snowballs after authorities called on citizens to stay home for the risk of accidents or the spread of coronavirus.
Meteorologists warned of dangerous conditions in the coming days, with temperatures dropping to minus 14 Fahrenheit (10 Celsius) next week and the prospect of snow turning to ice and damaged trees falling.
In Madrid, police surrounded buildings with heavy loads of snow on the roof in case of accidents, but residents took to the streets en masse to enjoy the rare view of their white-covered city.
About 100 workers and shoppers spent two nights sleeping at a mall in Majadahonda, a city north of Madrid, after being caught in a blizzard on Friday.
“There are people sleeping on the ground on cardboard,” Ivan Alcala, a restaurant worker, told TVE.
Madrid International Airport suspended flights until Sunday evening.
About 20,000 km of roads in central Spain have been affected by the storm, and the government will send convoys carrying the vaccine and food supplies to those in need, Transport Minister Jose Luis Abalos said on Saturday.
A man and a woman in a car drowned after a river broke out near Malaga in the south, while two homeless people froze to death in Madrid and Calatayud in the east, officials said.
The State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) said up to 20-30 cm (7-8 inches) of snow fell in Madrid on Saturday, the largest since 1971.