M1 alert saves river plunge sheep
RESCUERS waded into a freezing river to save a flock of sheep after seven drowned in the icy waters.
The M1 was closed while they spent almost four hours dragging them out.
A lorry driver raised the alarm after seeing 16 stuck in the river Colne alongside the M1 near Watford, Hertfordshire.
RSPCA officer Kate Wright said: “The only access to the sheep was the motorway hard shoulder so we called in Highways England and Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue.
“Sadly, seven of the ewes had already perished in the cold, deep water but officers managed to pull nine out alive.
“It was so upsetting that some had died.
“Thank goodness the lorry driver called us for help or they all would have died.
“The sheep all had sodden fleeces so were extremely heavy to pull out, many of them were struggling to keep their heads above the water.
“Sheep had access to the river for their water source but there were a lot of overgrown reeds so we believe they may have mistaken it for a riverbank and fallen in.”
Fellow officer Pete Warne entered the water on Wednesday with firefighters, using an inflatable slide to pull them to safety.
He said: “The water was freezing. I’m certain they wouldn’t have survived for much longer. Some were very weak and completely exhausted so we kept them in blankets.” DRIVERS are being alerted to treacherous conditions on icy roads this weekend as snow falls in places while temperatures plunge.
Breakdown rescue company Green Flag warned that more than 100,000 motorists are likely to break down over the next few days.
And the cold snap could stay throughout the run-up to Christmas.
Weather forecasters issued an amber warning – signalling enough snow and ice today to cause travel disruption and power cuts – in Scotland, Northern England and the Midlands.
Up to eight inches of snow could fall on very high ground, where the temperatures could plunge to -8C.
Flooding
The biggest snowfalls were forecast between noon today and 10am tomorrow across the East Midlands, Yorkshire, North-east and North-west England and Scotland.
Last night, bookmaker Ladbrokes was offering odds of 2/7 for snowfall anywhere in the UK on Christmas Day.
Its spokesman Alex Apati said: “It is looking increasingly likely that we will see snow on Christmas Day in the UK, with the odds dropping as fast as the temperatures.”
Green Flag’s Lucy Davies said of this weekend’s weather: “We can