UK snow chaos as -12C Arctic blast overnight traps Brits on roads and kills one
Temperatures have plunged below freezing across the UK - with six inches of snow causing travel chaos on Britain's roads.
The Met Office has rolled out a Yellow Weather Warning for snow and ice in the north-west of England, the Midlands, the south and parts of Wales and Scotland. In Cumbria, drivers say they have been trapped overnight after spending half-a-day queuing in stop-start traffic with no food or water. They told BBC they have been stuck for up to 19 hours as the icy blizzard pummels the border county.
Tragically this latest UK cold snap has already claimed its first death as a homeless man reportedly froze to death in a snow-covered car in temperatures as low as -10C overnight.North of the Scots border, the mercury has plummeted to -12C in some places. Back in Cumbria, police have decalred a "major incident" and urged travellers to avoid the roads today unless for urgent trips.
Countless motorists were forced to stay in their cars overnight in the sub-zero conditions (PA)Ant Brett travelled to Cumbria from his home in Essex for a family wedding, which he never made due to being stuck in standstill traffic for 19 hours. During the ordeal, he ran out of food and water and said emergency responders failed to deliver supplies to cars in the stretch of road where he was stranded.
Speaking to the BBC from his vehicle on the A595, he explained: "I've been stuck since 4pm on Saturday. I was heading up to a family wedding - it's fair to say I didn't make it. The cars here haven't had any water or food supplies. I'm down to my last bit of water and having to ration it. I know the emergency services are busy but we've just been left here without help."
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Meanwhile, Paul Smith says he is stuck on a local road while trying to get to Ambleside. He spent his Saturday evening in seriously delayed traffic on the M6.
The weather warnings are expected to continue through today, and police are warning people to avoid the roads if they can (PA)"The snow just came down and as you can see the road all the way down is still blocked," he said. "We're still about a mile-and-a-half from Ambleside and it's just been like moving ten yards, stopping and moving again."
Emergency responders from Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service said it had deployed 4X4 vehicles to help "vulnerable people stuck in the snow as required". Cumbria Police said that junctions 38 and 37 of the M6 Southbound were left blocked after lorries jack knifed. The A595 between Millom and Furness was also left impassable, the BBC reported.
National Highways said it had to deal with a large number of vehicles that were stranded on Saturday evening, most on the M6 between junctions 38 and 40.
The Yellow Weather Warning is set to last euntil around 11am this morning. Another identical warning was issued between midnight and 8am this morning in London, the east of England, the West Midlands and some sections of south Wales. This comes after another yellow weather warning expired at 7am this morning. One alert remains however, which stretches further noth to beyond Middslebrough, south below Birmingham and west into Wales until midday.
Last night, the freezing conditions lead to a fatality as a homeless man passed away while sleeping in a snow-covered car (Met Office)The UK Health Security Agency issued an amber cold-health alert in five of England's regions. A yellow warning was issued for four additional areas.
The agency warned: "Cold weather impacts are likely to be felt across the whole health service for an extended period of time, with potential for the whole population to be at risk."
The East and West Midlands, North West, North East and Yorkshire and the Humber also have an amber alert until December 5.
The freezing temperatures claimed their first victim earlier today after the cold snap reportedly froze a homeless man to death while spending the night in a snow covered car as the mercury plunged to -10C.
Firefighters had to be called out to cut the unnamed man's body free. Police officers were captured on video, which was circulated on X, gathered around a black car in Beeston, Nottinghamshire. An ambulance was also parked at the scene. Nottinghamshire Police said they were called following reports of a man's sudden death. They cordoned off the scene at 10am on Friday morning and remained there until the evening. It's understood the man had been living in his car.
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In a statement, Detective Inspector Claire Gould described the incident as 'tragic' but said it was not being treated as suspicious. She said: "Police were called to Dallas York Road, Beeston, at around 10am (1 December) following reports of a man's sudden death. Our thoughts are with this man's family and friends at this difficult time."
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