Blizzards are on the way

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Wrap up: it's going to get cold

Freezing temperatures, heavy snowfalls and strong winds are expected to hit Britain with a jolt next week, bringing chaos to roads, railways and airports.

Air temperatures could fall as low as minus 8c (18f), but experts are warning that with the wind chill factor taken into account it will actually feel like minus 14c (8f).

The arctic blast is on its way from Canada - where temperatures have plunged in some areas to minus 40c (minus 40f).

Many North American cities were turned into virtual ghost towns last week after warnings that even the slightest exposure to the frigid air could trigger frostbite.

Heavy snowfall is expected in Scotland and the North from Sunday night. The cold weather will then gradually spread across the country. London is expected to see snowy showers by Wednesday. It was not clear last night how long the cold snap would last.

A spokesman for the Met Office said: 'We are forecasting a very, very cold period coming up with sub-zero temperatures, heavy snow in Scotland and the North-East and snowy showers in London and the South.

'The temperature in Scotland and parts of the North is likely to go down to minus 8c (18f) overnight.

'But taking into consideration the windchill factor, which measures what people perceive the temperature to be, it is likely to reach minus 14c.

'We have had such a mild winter that it will come as a real shock for many people, especially in the South where we are not so used to it being that cold.'

The AA is urging all motorists to ensure that their cars have been properly serviced and topped up with anti-freeze so the engines will start and not cut out suddenly while driving.

A spokesman said motorists could save time in the morning by laying newspaper on the outside of a car's windscreen to stop it freezing. But he warned that the paper could freeze to the glass.

The elderly are advised to stay at home with the heating on and wear several layers of clothing when temperatures dip below freezing.

The independent forecaster Metcheck.com said even daytime temperatures could fall to minus 8c (18f) in the North and minus 3c (27f) further south, taking windchill into account.

Forecaster Andrew Bond said the cold air was on its way from Canada via Greenland. 'It will still be cold by the time it gets here because there's nowhere for it to warm up on the way,' he said.

'We could well be in line for one of the most severe winter events the UK has seen for a few years.

'The path the air takes before reaching us is over some of coldest areas in the Northern Hemisphere.'

The lowest temperature recorded in Britain was on January 10, 1982, at Braemar in Scotland, where the mercury plummeted to minus 27.2c (minus 17f). Experts do not expect that record ever to be broken.

 

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