Western Morning News

CORNWALL – AND YES IT’S REAL SNOW!

- WMN REPORTERS wmnnewsdes­k@reachplc.com

THE Westcountr­y was braced for ‘proper’ snow yesterday as forecaster­s warned of a greater chance of wintry showers driven by gales for tomorrow, Friday and Sunday.

Most of the region has so far avoided the worst of the snow which has caused chaos in eastern areas, although temperatur­es in the far South West – when the wind chill is factored in – are among the coldest in England, feeling like minus 7C.

Snow did fall in parts of Cornwall yesterday, with posts on social media showing garden decking and hedges given a light sprinkling. It led to some amusing posts on social media in a part of the country that rarely experience­s snowfall, and took minds off the coronaviru­s pandemic.

At Paradise Park in Hayle, a keeper created a tiny snowman, a reflection of the modest snowfall in the town.

In Devon, parts of the south coast were also treated to modest snow flurries throughout the day and motorists were urged to take care on frozen road surfaces.

Pictures showed snow at Newton Ferrers, near Plymouth, at Ivybridge and on Dartmoor.

However, it was the cold rather than the snow which caused the greatest concern. Public Health England in the South West tweeted: “Severe cold weather conditions are now forecast until midday, Friday 12 February.

“Stay well while at home by heating your home to at least 18C. This helps to reduce the risk cold weather has on health.”

The Met Office forecast for the rest of the week suggested that it would be largely dry across the South West today, after a frosty start, with occasional snow showers. Temperatur­es could reach 4C, but with the strong easterly winds it will feel much colder across the region.

The outlook for Thursday to Saturday predicts further wintry showers and coastal gales. On Sunday, the Met Office warned there could be potentiall­y heavy snow in the Westcountr­y as wetter weather moves in from the Atlantic, colliding with the cold air from the east.

Elsewhere, weather watchers recorded the coldest night of the winter so far in the early hours of yesterday – minus 16.7C in the Scottish Highlands.

The temperatur­e at Altnaharra is the coldest temperatur­e recorded there since 2010, Met Office spokespers­on Nicola Maxey said. She added that temperatur­es could plunge further tonight into tomorrow, but that conditions across the UK are set to get milder towards the weekend.

Ms Maxey said there was anecdotal evidence that 10cm to 15cm of snow fell in south-east coastal areas at the start of the week. “There’s still a risk of snow anywhere down the eastern side of the UK,” she said. “We’re in these cold easterly winds.

“The cold air crosses from Russia and eastern Europe, crosses the sea, picks up some moisture, then when it hits the land you see rain or, because the air’s so cold, you see snow.”

Some snow is likely to continue into today but “more showery rather than large accumulati­ons”, she added. Ms Maxey said the UK had a “glancing blow from the northern edge” of Storm Darcy, which crossed northern Europe and was named by the Dutch weather service. She explained that Storm Darcy pulled away from the UK on Monday.

Temperatur­es will widely be below freezing overnight across the country and in low single figures in the day time today, she said.

“It certainly looks as though towards the end of the weekend we might see day-time temperatur­es move up a little bit,” Ms Maxey added.

“Certainly, by the time you get to Sunday in London, you might be looking at quite widely 6C. So less cold, but expectatio­ns are that Wednesday into Thursday might be the coldest night of the spell so far and then we see things pick up a little bit.”

 ?? PICTURE: Greg Martin ?? > A family have a snowball fight at Ding Dong Mine near Madron yesterday
PICTURE: Greg Martin > A family have a snowball fight at Ding Dong Mine near Madron yesterday
 ?? Victoria Jones ?? > No, not Devon, but Thorpe Bay, Essex, where early morning swimmer Sally-Ann Manthorp puts on gloves in the snow on the beach before swimming in 1.4 degree water
Victoria Jones > No, not Devon, but Thorpe Bay, Essex, where early morning swimmer Sally-Ann Manthorp puts on gloves in the snow on the beach before swimming in 1.4 degree water
 ??  ?? > Just enough snow for a tiny snowman at Paradise Park in Hayle
> Just enough snow for a tiny snowman at Paradise Park in Hayle

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