Brrrace for a week of icy chaos
More wintry weather on the way after coldest night of the year
SCOTS have been warned to prepare for another week of Arctic conditions, with temperatures set to plunge to -15C.
Snow fell and settled across large parts of the country yesterday after the mercury dropped to a glacial -9C, making Friday night the coldest of the year so far.
Now forecasters have confirmed another icy blast is set to hit Scotland in the coming days – with the freezing weather likely to cause chaos on the roads, especially with forthcoming train strikes set to increase levels of traffic.
However, yesterday’s cold front brought plenty of festive cheer, with one park near Inverness transformed into a Christmas card scene as laughing children sledged down the snow-covered slopes.
Families enjoying the winter weather flocked to the lying snow and built snowmen, dogs frolicked amid the falling flakes and opportunistic ice hockey players were quick to turn a frozen pond at Queen’s Park, Glasgow, into a rink.
In Edinburgh, snow-topped houses bathed in bright sunlight gave the capital a charming Alpine feel.
Rachel Ayres of the Met Office said the big freeze will continue for several days, with the lowest temperatures to be found in areas where snow is lying – especially in parts of Orkney and the Shetland Islands.
Ms Ayres said: ‘It looks as if cold weather is going to be
‘I wish I could go sledging every day’
sticking around until next weekend. There’s no change in sight in the short term.
‘There is also a continued risk of snow going on through the week and that is something we will keep assessing in the coming days.’
Scotland recorded its coldest night so far this year on Friday into yesterday morning at Eskdalemuir in Dumfriesshire, where the temperature fell to an icy -9.2C.
Bitterly cold temperatures are set to persist up until next weekend, with -10C the expected low point. However some Met Office models suggest it could plummet to -15C in the coming days.
Scots can expect a ‘severe frost’ with snow showers, mainly on the Northern Isles.
Two warnings for snow and ice covering most of the country do not expire until noon today while a third – for the Northern and Western Isles – begins at noon and lasts for 24 hours. Traffic Scotland yesterday posted pictures of the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route blanketed in snow amid showers of sleet, and asked drivers to make way for gritters attempting to keep the road clear.
At Daviot, Inverness-shire, Austin and Caelan McGillivray from Inverness had great fun sledging in the winter sunshine. Four-year-old Austin said: ‘I love sledging and wish that I could do it every day.’ Caelan, eight, added: ‘It’s great that there is so much snow here as there isn’t any at our house.’
Meanwhile, the Met Office has advised people to ‘stay upto-date with the latest forecasts, and if you are travelling, plan your route carefully, take extra precautions and give yourself extra time to travel because roads will be slippery and there will be a lot of frost around the place’.
People have also been encouraged to look out for friends and family who are vulnerable in the cold and to ensure they have access to warm food and drinks, adding that they should maintain indoor temperatures of at least 18C (64.4F).
However, some families face energy bills of £100 a week, having been forced to turn up
the heating since the mercury first dropped last Monday.
With the price of energy soaring, around £2.8 billion will be spent this week across Britain’s 28 million households as winter bites – close to double the amount paid in cold weeks last winter.
Dr Agostinho Sousa, consultant in public health medicine at the UK Health Security Agency, said: ‘Cold weather can have serious consequences for health. Older people and those with heart or lung conditions can be particularly at risk.
‘If you have a pre-existing medical condition, you should heat your home to a temperature that is comfortable for you.
‘In rooms you mostly use such as the living room or bedroom, try to heat them to at least 18C if you can. Wearing several layers of clothing will keep you warmer than one thicker layer.’