Black ice makes taking out the rubbish impossible for Dutch man

Taking out the rubbish is enough of a chore without having to contend with the twisted humour of Mother Nature.

As a cold snap created a layer of black ice over hard surfaces across the Netherlands, one Dutch man was faced with the unenviable task of walking up a gentle slope with a bag of rubbish.

In a video posted on YouTube yesterday, an unsympathetic neighbour giggles hysterically as the man struggles to step onto the kerb.

The man slips to his knees as he steps onto the footpath from the road, but every time he climbs onto his feet he slides backwards away from the bin.

But while countless Dutch residents have taken to the streets in ice skates, the black ice hasn't been all fun for the Netherlands.

Passersby found a man in Assen who is believed to have died when he slipped over walking his dog.

Schools have been closed, while 450 dairy farmers were asked to pump their milk into manure pits because drivers were unable to collect them.

In Friesland, a truck filled with gritting salt intended to make the roads safer to drive on overturned.

The weather service believes the black ice will begin to melt on Thursday (today local time).