Blizzard Brrritain
Snow blast hits travel and homes
KILLER snowstorms caused deadly crashes, travel mayhem and mass power cuts yesterday.
Rail, road and air ground to a halt as millions of holiday revellers had getaway plans wrecked.
At least one person died as ice, hail and sleet lashed parts of the UK.
And there is no sign of the deep freeze easing as forecasters predicted more flurries today.
More than 13,000 homes were plunged into darkness by power cuts as wintry weather swept in.
The majority were in the West Midlands, although the East Midlands, the South West and south-west Wales were also caught up in the blackout.
Met Office meteorologist Simon artridge said: “We had some quickly changing weather overnight.”
One man died and another was left fighting for his life after a horror car crash in Suffolk.
The two-car smash happened on the eastbound carriageway of the A14 at Rougham on Boxing Day night.
Fears that powerful gusts could rip the roof off a shopping centre forced a major road closure in Cornwall.
Drivers faced huge logjams as both lanes of the A30 were shut.
Speaking from the scene, police said last night: “The roof is still on but it looks like it could be about to blow off and end up on the A30. The fire brigade are at the scene and trying to secure the building.”
Also on the A30, three people were trapped when an ambulance overturned after smashing into a BMW.
Over two inches of snow fell on Exmoor, South Wales and the Cotswolds, while other areas had flurries.
Fierce 50mph winds were also recorded in parts of the south-west overnight.
Highways England reported severe conditions on the A14 near Kettering.
An HGV jack-knifed in snow on the M5 in Gloucestershire and a crash on the M1 caused tailbacks near Northampton.
Stansted Airport near London temporarily cancelled all flights to allow safety checks to be carried out. Australian passenger Fiona Thatcher was among those removed from an easyJet plane after four hours on the runway.
Solicitor Fiona, 28, was going to Belfast for a pal’s birthday but her trip was ruined. She said: “I thought there was going to be a riot. People were shouting. We got a cup of water and a packet of crisps.”
An easyJet spokesman said the company had apologised to Fiona. The weather, a technical fault and staffing issues caused her flight to be axed.
London City departures were facing an average delay of 40 minutes, while it was 50 minutes at Stansted.
Bristol and Manchester airports also faced delays as dozens of flights were affected by the snow.