Afternoon:
7°c
The big freeze: Temperatures expected to hit -6c tonight
Mark Prigg, Science and Technology Editor22 Dec 2009
A big freeze will pile even more misery on commuters and Christmas holidaymakers tonight on one of the coldest nights of the year in London.
Temperatures of -6C in the suburbs and -2C in central London are expected to cause major difficulties on icy roads and pavements.
The warning from forecasters came as London and the South-East struggled to deal with the heavy snowfall of last night which closed roads, airport runways and railway lines. Boris Johnson urged people to defy the extreme weather and declared London “open for business”.
Thousands of commuters were stranded today as snow and ice caused disruption for the second time in four days following Friday's blizzard. Motorists were trapped for hours in their cars in Hampshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire.
There were severe delays on the M4, M3 and M40, to the north and west of London.
Buses were left at the roadside after more than five centimetres of snow fell in under an hour.
Train operators this morning cancelled and delayed many services as Network Rail brought in extra staff to try to keep the tracks clear. The AA said last night was its busiest for breakdowns in 25 years and that at 8am it had around 6,500 breakdowns pending, with 700 coming in every hour.
The Local Government Association this afternoon rejected “unfounded accusations” that councils had been ill-prepared, insisting they had gritted as many roads as possible although they admitted some gritters had broken down.
Forecasters say the freeze could be as disruptive as the heavy snowfall that caused much of the country to come to a halt last night.
“It is going to be one of the coldest nights of the year,” said Met Office forecaster John Hammond.
Temperatures were also expected to rise to just 1C today, meaning snow and ice was likely to begin thawing and then refreezing, making roads and pavements extremely dangerous.
“Luckily there will be no snow today, so the disruption is likely to be less severe,” said Mr Hammond. “However, it's going to be very dangerous on the roads and pavements that aren't treated. The ice could be just as much of a hazard as the snow was today.”
The same problem is expected to hit commuters tomorrow evening, with another freezing night predicted.
“Tomorrow is going to be cold as well, with a maximum temperature of 2C, and another cold night in prospect, so we could see the same problem with ice,” the Met man added. “However, we expect the weather to become milder later in the week — there is only a very slim chance of a white Christmas.”
The heavy snow and ice which brought Britain to a standstill last night was the result of a freezing wind from Eastern Europe, forecasters said today. The band of freezing air came to a halt over Britain, causing temperatures as low as -3C.
The problem was compounded by a low pressure system over Scotland, which “pushed” the freezing air around it, causing it to stall above the South-East. As it mixed with the warmer air over Britain, the extremely cold wind produced a freak shower of freezing rain across parts of Hampshire and Sussex and turned roads into ice rinks.Freezing rain is caused by rain falling through a shallow layer of cold air.
Icy winds also caused heavy snowfalls, creating the “perfect storm” which brought so much of the country to a standstill.
Reader views (10)
-6C is only 20 Degrees Farenheit! Get a life folks, that is only sweater (Jumper?) weather in Illinois. NOTHING at all.
- Retiredscotsman, Illinois, USA, 23/12/2009 01:47
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Warm greetings from Siberia. It's -35c now. That's what I call a "big freeze". That global warming seems to have avoided us.
- Tragicomedy, Guess, 22/12/2009 16:40
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Yes yeh yeh we live in England and it snows a bit.....sometimes it even gets cold at night.
- Tony, Hove England, 22/12/2009 15:35
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Its OK for Boris,he does not have to wait hours for London transport.Memo to Richmond Council,if I should fall on your pavements ill sue you for any injuries and loss of earnings.
- Dave, london, 22/12/2009 15:32
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This is so not fair - global warming only applies in West Byfleet - we have no snow. I now have to keep the telly off to save upsetting my 11 year old who is dressed and ready to make snowmen.
- Gazza, London/UK, 22/12/2009 15:22
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Global warming doesn't mean everything is going to get warmer or even hotter; once the ice melts and cools down the gulf stream controling the UK weather; Britian will flood and freeze, not get hotter with palm trees all over the place etc.
Melted ice means more water in the wrong places, and no water in the wrong places etc; think about it?
- Mickinlondon, london, 22/12/2009 15:19
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What happened to "global warming"? It was a hoax all along wasn't it?!
- Neil, People'S Republic Of Europe (Formerly England), London UK, 22/12/2009 14:22
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"...Network Rail brought in extra staff to try to keep the tracks clear"
Excellent! But there are a huge number of offenders on so-called community service work, so why not get these scum to help out as well?
- John Bull, Londonistan, UK, 22/12/2009 13:59
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I can only hope that there aren't too many idiots like the one I saw in Canonbury Road last night - trying to come out of a sheet iced side road onto a snowy/icy road - wheels spinning and car sliding out of control with the driver on his mobile phone!!
- Andy, london, 22/12/2009 13:58
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So the Copenhagen Conference was a success after all. Within just a couple of days global warming has been abolished - what a result!
- Kenneth Tinson, London, 22/12/2009 13:44
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