Slips, trips and falls after cold snap leaves skating rink
ACCIDENT and emergency departments were inundated yesterday as black ice brought overnight mayhem to Scotland.
The skating-rink conditions on icy pavements and roads caused a large number of falls and a series of car smashes.
The freezing temperatures even forced one of the country’s main airports to close.
A spokesman for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said: ‘We have been treating a large number of injuries from slips, trips and falls. In certain areas, we have had to bring in extra staff to cope with demand. The north- east also reported a rise in accidents i nvolving f alls. With weather warnings for ice in place until later today, a spokesman for NHS Grampian urged the vulnerable to remain indoors where possible.
It comes only days after Professor Michael Griffin, president of the Royal College of Surgeons, called for better gritting of roads and pavements to prevent personal injuries, which lead to people attending hospital and potentially contracting coronavirus.
Some pedestrians took to social media to vent their anger at the hazardous state of pavements.
Lorraine Rafferty Hutcheon posted on Facebook: ‘Both myself and my dog fell this morning on black ice. It’s really scary out there.’
Alison Taborda, from East Renfrewshire, asked: ‘Are there any salt bins in Giffnock? Roads and pavements lethal this morning. Fell twice on my way to the station.’
City of Edinburgh Labour councillor, Scott Arthur, blamed a lack of finance for limited gritting.
He said: ‘The conditions are not great today. I am passing all the feedback I get to the council but they lack the funding to do much more than the priority routes. The cold snap has really exposed that and the NHS will pay the price.’
Councillor Lesley Macinnes, convener of Edinburgh’s Environment Committee, said the council gritted all priority routes including routes to hospitals and bus routes on Sunday night and again yesterday morning.
She added: ‘Our staff will continue to work round the clock to grit as much as we can.’
Glasgow SNP Councillor Mhairi Hunter said councils ‘ have never gritted all the pavements and don’t have the resources to do that’.
She added: ‘In countries where prolonged icy conditions over winter are the norm there are generally bylaws requiring property owners to grit the pavement outside their home or business. Maybe this is something we need to consider.’
A City of Glasgow Council spokeswoman said: ‘Our teams have been out, doing a sterling job today. Peo
‘Extra staff to cope with demand’
ple have to take a bit of personal responsibility when they are going out in these conditions.’
The Met Office warned eastern Scotland from Aberdeenshire to the Scottish Borders to expect snow and icy patches overnight until 11am today. Nicky Maxey of the Met Office said: ‘We have a UK low temperature of -8.5C (16F) at Loch Glascarnoch between Inverness and Ullapool on Monday morning. Tuesday morning could produce a -10C (14F) in the north west and even by Friday, it will be -8C (17F) at night in Glasgow.’
In Lanarkshire, crashes on the M8 at Eurocentral caused chaos while the M73 motorway was closed completely south-bound due to a ‘multi-vehicle’ crash at Gartcosh, near Glasgow.
Traffic Scotland urged motorists to drive sensibly and tweeted: ‘We have seen vehicles reverse up the hard shoulder or turn around and drive the wrong way on the M73.’
Further north, a serious accident also closed the A9 in both directions at Doll, south of Brora, in Sutherland.
Elsewhere, bus companies had to suspend services in Wishaw, North Lanarkshire, and at Spiersbridge, in south Glasgow, due to black ice affecting their vehicles. Edinburgh airport was forced to divert a handful of inbound flights to Glasgow airport on Sunday night after freezing rain and hail caused the main runway to black over.
An airport spokesperson confirmed: ‘Seven arriving flights were diverted and six departures rescheduled for [yesterday morning]. All flights departed and the airport is operating as normal.’
SKIERS and sledgers have been slammed after flocking to Scotland’s largest snow- sport resort over the weekend.
Dozens of motorists were seen parking outside gates to the venue and hiked two miles to reach it, sparking fears that some had broken Covid rules to get there.
Cairngorm Mountain closed until further notice on Christmas Eve following the announcement mainland Scotland was being placed into Level 4 from Boxing Day.