Iced over... frozen sea at Sandbanks
The big freeze gripped Britain yesterday with the coldest day of winter so far – and Heathrow Airport grounded almost a third of flights before a single snowflake fell.
As temperatures tumbled as low as -12C and up to 15cm of snow was dumped on parts of the country, furious air passengers were left stranded.
Heathrow’s Spanish-owned operator BAA triggered anger after cancelling around 200 flights at 2pm yesterday - even though snow wasn’t due for another two hours.
The decision means that flights of up to 18,000 travellers could be rescheduled or cancelled as the big freeze grips Britain.
The cancellations brought back bitter memories of Christmas 2010 when Heathrow shut for five days.
BAA spent £32million boosting its snow plough fleet after a damning report. But last night one runway was closed and planes were only allowed to land, with none taking off. Stansted, Luton and Birmingham airports also closed last night as temperatures dropped. A spokesman for Heathrow said: “We deeply regret any disruption caused to passengers by the cold weather.
“Reducing the flight schedule means we can fly as many people as possible and return the airport to normal as quickly as possible.”
The chaos came a day after London mayor Boris Johnson said: “Across our roads and rails hundreds of workers are on standby to ensure that, should we receive a mega deposit of snow, we are in a position to keep the capital moving.”
The coldest place in the country was South Newington in Oxfordshire at -12.4C.
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The big freeze is the result of a mild front from the Atlantic colliding with cold air. Even the sea in Poole Harbour, Dorset, froze over as the temperature overnight fell to -7C. A cross-channel ferry had to crack its way through the ice to get out.
Sennybridge, South Wales, shivered in -8.6C, while further north, snow blanketed Manchester, turning rooftops of homes white as temperatures hovered around -2C.
The Met Office's amber alert – the second highest possible – went out as snow swept over West England and Wales at midday, before moving across the Midlands to southern and eastern areas last night. A Met Office spokesman said: “We are experiencing the coldest snap of winter. The big danger could come on Sunday night and Monday morning when the snow turns to rain while temperatures stay the same – which will create treacherous driving conditions.”
The Arctic weather caused havoc for motorists as the AA reported 16,000 breakdowns – almost double the 8,500 it usually gets on a Saturday.
AA spokesman Gavin Hill-Smith said: “We see travel becoming harder as snow clears and the rain freezes, causing terrible conditions. We are concerned that the rain will wash away grit and cause real issues for motorists.”
And more than twice as many central heating boilers are expected to pack up this weekend than usual because of the freezing temperatures, according to British Gas. They are predicting 50,000 call-outs, compared to an average of 20,000 on a typical winter weekend.
Several sporting fixtures were called off but Stoke's game against Sunderland was played with snow falling throughout – meaning the pitch's white lines had to be painted blue.
Average temperatures are expected to stay below 2C until Tuesday when slightly warmer weather is predicted. The freeze has also affected the Continent. Spain has been hit by the coldest weather in more than three decades. Majorca and Ibiza endured temperatures of -10C and were battered by gale-force winds.
Originally posted here:
Snow hits Britain and causes chaos