FLOODING TO FOLLOW WORST SNOW SINCE 91
PARTS of Britain have been put on flood alert after the worst snowstorms since 1991 caused travel mayhem yesterday.
The Environment Agency put out five flood warnings urging the public to take ‘immediate action’ – two in Cornwall, one at Swanage in Dorset, and others for the Tyne Estuary and for the North Sea at Whitley Bay.
A further 16 flood alerts telling homeowners to ‘be prepared’ have been issued across the South-West and North-East, with officials warning of a threat from strong winds combined with high tides.
Much of Britain has been told to stay at home today following a freezing day yesterday – the coldest March day since records began in 1959.
As the Beast from the East merged with Storm Emma’s howling winds, the Met Office issued England’s first red weather alert for life-threatening conditions.
Blizzards paralysed swathes of the country and troops had to be drafted in to rescue vulnerable people and to ferry doctors and nurses to hospitals.
Police in Devon, Cornwall, Cumbria and Lincolnshire ordered families to stay indoors as winds and blizzards bore down.
Chief Inspector Adrian Leisk, of Devon and Cornwall Police, said: ‘Please, please do not venture out on to the roads.’ Superintendent Mark Pannone, of Cumbria Police, said: ‘We rarely say don’t drive and we hope that on this occasion people will take heed.’ And Lincolnshire Police warned that drivers faced becoming stranded, adding: ‘We are not in a position to recover you.’
The RAC said it had attended 8,000 breakdowns across the country – 70 per cent more than expected at this time of year.
The red weather alert, which covered parts of the South-West, warned of ‘ widespread damage, travel and power disruption’ and a risk to life caused by a deadly combination of 70mph winds and freezing conditions.
The warning was in place until 2am today, but yellow and amber warnings remain for most of the country until 9am tomorrow.
The snowfall peaked at 19 inches at RAF Spadeadam, Cumbria, yesterday – the first meteorological day of spring. The coldest temperature was -10C (14F), recorded in Kinloch, Scotland. In Powys, Wales, temperatures did not rise above -5.9C (21F). Similarly, the highest temperature in Okehampton, Devon, was a mere -5.8C.
Forecasters warned there would be another day of freezing weather today, with snow and strong winds forecast for swathes of the country.
More than 500 flights have been cancelled in England and Scotland so far, including 157 at Heathrow, 129 at Edinburgh, 77 at Gatwick, 67 at London City and 48 at Bristol.
In Lincolnshire, Shropshire and Edinburgh the Armed Forces were called in after police were inundated with appeals for help from those struggling to cope with more heavy overnight snowfall.
The RAF sent ten 4x4 vehicles and 20 personnel to help transport health workers to hospital in Lincolnshire, and to take them and medicines to vulnerable people in the community who required care. They also deployed ten 4x4s in Shropshire and eight in Edinburgh. On the trains, passengers were urged to travel only if absolutely necessary. Some 58 stations in Kent and East Sussex were closed as operator Southeastern advised commuters to work from home.
‘Public urged to take immediate action’ The Harbour View restaurant in Seaton Sluice, Northumberland, closed due to snow – but re-opened to allow a 92-year-old woman to get her weekly fish and chips