Early snowfall hits Shropshire
Saturday 27th November 2010, 11:31AM GMT.
Shropshire and Mid Wales were blanketed in snow today as the region shuddered under the first full blast of winter.
Severe weather warnings were in place for almost all parts of the UK as the nation was left in the grip of heavy overnight falls and freezing temperatures. Up to 10 inches of snow fell over higher ground with temperatures across the country plunging below zero again.
It came after a day when much of the country was badly disrupted by the earliest widespread snow for 17 years.
The Met Office said London and the South East, the South West, East Midlands, Yorkshire and Humber and the north east of England faced widespread, icy roads today.
Falls of at least an inch blanketed Shropshire, with heavier drifts in Mid Wales.
Both the M54 and the A5 in Shropshire were badly affected first thing this morning with drivers reporting the routes virtually reduced to one carriageway in both directions and traffic at a crawl.
Scotland and the north east of England bore the brunt of the bad weather, with falls of up to 12ins recorded in the Highlands and North Yorkshire.
Snow was also drifting across Wales and the South West while even low-lying parts of the UK saw freezing temperatures, the Met Office said.
One man was taken to hospital in Mid Wales last night after his private ambulance overturned on the Beulah to Newbridge on Wye road, near Llandrindod Wells, because of the severe weather conditions.
Temperatures in Leek in Staffordshire were among the coldest at minus 2.5C.
Forecasters said the cold snap was set to tighten its grip, blanketing swathes of the country in white by the middle of next week.
The M4 westbound in south Wales saw a 26-mile tailback last night, with the M25 and M40 also badly hit.
The AA said it was called out to 16,000 breakdowns by the end of the day, with 1,220 calls coming in every hour at the busiest time. Wales and the North East were the worst-hit for breakdowns.
The unusual weather has been caused by high pressure over Greenland and low pressure in the Baltics, forcing cold winds from the north east across Europe.
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Wow, snow in winter,whatever next? And remember folks to email your snow piccys to the newspapers,radio and tv stations so we know what snow looks like :-)
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As a soothsayer of some reknown, may I go on record as predicting more of this sort of thing for the next 3 months. After this period I see a brighter future weather wise extending for a period of around 7-9 months although there will be some unseasonally hot times and wet periods so it won’t all be fun. At that point my crystal ball froze-over so I cannot be certain but I suspect it means something cold.
In other future related predictions; Christmas will be the new black for the next 4 weeks.
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Can you also tell me, will I have a birthday in the next twelve months?
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Why are people like you think your funny by being sarcastic.
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Why don’t people like you, Get a sense of humour?
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Blunt sarcasm != Humour.
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I dont want a sense of humour. I just like winding doucebags like you up.
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Don’t know what you’re (check out the correct spelling) on about.
I suppose however it brings smiles to the faces of people so is it such a bad thing?
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Norman, it’s not winter yet. It’s autumn. I don’t understand how people always seem to forget spring and autumn and go straight to summer and winter.
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traditionally you’ll find that the 1st of November is regarded as the first day of Winter….
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accurately you’ll find the Winter solstice is the first day of Winter
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No, December 21st/22nd is the start of Winter.
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St Martins day in November is traditionally the first day of winter, with the Winter Solstice being known as midwinter as it then falls in the middle of the winter season…. The winter solstice is sometimes regarded as the first day of winter purely because our british weather gets colder generally after this date. Midsummers day is the longest day Midwinters day is the shortest. Goes on the number of hours of sunlight therefore, not the temperature???
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From my observations, in the UK we have only two seasons – Winter and the first week in June.
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So true!!!!!
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The time of year when people start banging cars into things and blaming the gritters has come early this year..
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Baltics? Have they been breeding?
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The roads have snow on the paths have snow on and yes as a nation we will be moaning about the lack of salting on our tarmac.
I remember when the snow used to come down heavy and stay with us for a few weeks, the upsides to this was the odd day off school and sledging, the down side was listening to our parents moan about the roads….. lol
THis dont change we just notice more as we get old, bring back the fun to winter and snowball fight with your friends and neighbours.
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FFS please stop being old misery guts. Snow this time of the year is fresh, exciting and new. People have every right to get exited about snow and the onset of the winter wonderland.
If you don’t like snow pictures and all the furure over the onset of winter I suggest you move to Australia
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If I do have an issue about the weather it is the tendency in this country to make a catastrophe out of seasonal norms in our otherwise benign climate. In Friday’s paper there was even mention of a “white out” to describe a dusting of snow. A white out of course describes an extreme found in arctic conditions in which land, sky, horizon and landmarks are indistinguishable due to blizzard conditions. Hardly what we’re experiencing.
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Lucky we have the Shropshire Star to tell us mere mortals that it has snowed! I mean, how else were we to know? Look out of the window?
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The snow MUST be an illusion
The Met Office was saying only yesterday that 2010 has been one of the warmest years on record.
Remember to deny the fact of climate change which used to be known as Global Warming is heresy!
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The clue is in the word “Global”. It describes climactic changes and temperature increases across the whole planet over a prolonged and measurable period of time. It does not refer to seasonal weather events in one small part of a tiny island to the west of continental Europe
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Do you dispute that, worldwide, 2010 has been one of the warmest years on record? Where’s your evidence?
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I do not mind the snow but I hate being cold.
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Thanks Shropshire Star. I didn’t know that it had snowed today in Shropshire until you told us. No doubt there will be several photos each day of various places in Shropshire under about 0.5cm of Snow and and headlines shouting “Severe Weather Hits County” and the whole of the UK will grind to a halt once more.
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does the 1cm of snow constitute a blanket of snow as per the headline?
just enjoy the beauty of the snow and sunshine and enjoy walking in it.
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snow is a great leveller all those people with unkempt messy front gardens look the same as well manicured front gardens.
I suppose we’ll soon have the adverts from “slipped on the snow” not your fault companies.
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Has someone been using my name? Is this a breach of copyright?
If you have any information please forward it to me at PO Box 666, Brisbane, Australia
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You could also move to New Zealand! which is where I’m calling from and it’s thirty degrees.
Mawahahaha
best
Mikey
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Hey Norman, am still waiting to look at those readers’ pics on the radio when I switch on. All that snow delights the onlooker but not the motorist. Wake up early to clear the windscreen and the frozen path.
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The media does print some utter drivel. It’s winter; it’s cold and we should expect fog, ice and snow. We put up with far worse weather in the last thirty years at this time of year – 1981 with ice floes on the River Severn. As for falls of snow “blanketing” Shropshire, there isn’t any at all down in the south of the county – yet. The report is simply not accurate. And as for being excited about snow, well perhaps if you are aged 5-10, but having to go out in such conditions or drive in them is no fun at all.
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#6 If only it was that simple oswestrian.
It effect is more extreme weather.
Still it’s only recently that many folk in Shropshire would admit the world is not flat!
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There are some right grumpy types on here who just like to moan about the Shropshire star. Everyones reporting on the weather because it’s extreme for this time of year.
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we may all scoff about a bad winter etc, if we thought last winter was long and hard it is as nothing as what is to hit the uk over the next 10 weeks. temperatures as low as -22, and 20 feet of snow, no not drifts, snow levels will take many weeks to get rid of. so feel sorry for the farmers who will have to buy in ever more expensive winter feed. i do not advocate stockpiling but we would do well to have 2 or 3 sacks of potatoes stored well away from frost,
winter you ain’t seen nothing yet, wrap up stock up and save up. roll on april and never mock weather forcasters, sometimes they get it right.
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You can play “comment bingo” with stories like this. There is always the sarcastic “duh, never seen snow before” comment – usually the first one. We then have the “in my day …….” style comment. Then to finish off there is the “I live in Canada (insert country as appropriate), and we’ve had 12 feet of snow and the schools are still open ……”. In this instance it appears the foreign comment is replaced with the “is hot in New Zealand” comment.
Change the record peeps!
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Try -33 like we have just had in Calgary!
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Bingo!
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just remember folks don’t eat yellow snow ;-)
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q panick buying and moaning brits unable to drive, skiving off work to go slegging and generally not coping at all, idiots, this country has gone to the dogs since they kicked out poor lady thatcher
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If we’re likely to expect a prolonged, cold, snowy, icy spell, then a set of winter tyres might be a good idea. That’s what they do in countries where this kind of weather is the norm, which is also why they don’t have as many problems driving in the snow and ice.
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i was not aware mrs t was a weather forecaster but if she could just breath on the a49 between wooferton and whitchurch she would save the gritters and shropshire council 12 weeks winter expenses
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What no schools closed. it can’t be snowing.
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