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| Ice and fog across UK disrupt dozens of flights | Ice and fog across UK disrupt dozens of flights |
| (4 months later) | |
| The UK's worldwide reputation as the island of fog has come true for once, with rival fronts of mild and icy weather doing battle across the southern part of the country. | The UK's worldwide reputation as the island of fog has come true for once, with rival fronts of mild and icy weather doing battle across the southern part of the country. |
| About 60 flights have been cancelled at Heathrow as air traffic controllers widen the gap between arrivals and departures to ease the pressure during murk reminiscent of 19th-century smog that earned the country its misty reputation. | About 60 flights have been cancelled at Heathrow as air traffic controllers widen the gap between arrivals and departures to ease the pressure during murk reminiscent of 19th-century smog that earned the country its misty reputation. |
| The chilly blanket, complete with light falls of snow along the Channel coast, marks the gradual advance of wet and warmer Atlantic fronts against a bastion of extreme cold held in place by high pressure over the North Sea and Scotland. Overnight temperatures plummeted to -10C (14F) at Tulloch Bridge in Invernessshire with normally balmy Chesham in Buckinghamshire not far behind at -8.7C (16.3F). | The chilly blanket, complete with light falls of snow along the Channel coast, marks the gradual advance of wet and warmer Atlantic fronts against a bastion of extreme cold held in place by high pressure over the North Sea and Scotland. Overnight temperatures plummeted to -10C (14F) at Tulloch Bridge in Invernessshire with normally balmy Chesham in Buckinghamshire not far behind at -8.7C (16.3F). |
| The Met Office map of severe weather warnings has two large yellow bubbles of "be aware" status, the lowest level of alert, one for fog and ice over most of southern England and the Midlands and the other for icy conditions at the northern tip of Scotland and engulfing the Orkney and Shetland islands. The Met Office forecast for 12 December says: "Fog may be slow to clear, particularly from central and eastern areas with perhaps some light snow. Otherwise bright, cold and frosty. Wintry showers will continue in the far north, while rain is expected across Northern Ireland later." | The Met Office map of severe weather warnings has two large yellow bubbles of "be aware" status, the lowest level of alert, one for fog and ice over most of southern England and the Midlands and the other for icy conditions at the northern tip of Scotland and engulfing the Orkney and Shetland islands. The Met Office forecast for 12 December says: "Fog may be slow to clear, particularly from central and eastern areas with perhaps some light snow. Otherwise bright, cold and frosty. Wintry showers will continue in the far north, while rain is expected across Northern Ireland later." |
| Thursday will see the freeze's hold begin to crumble as the milder weather pushes on, reinforced by further bands of damp and warmer weather from the Atlantic. The prospect for the rest of the week is one of the customary "unsettled" pattern that looks likely to continue for the rest of the month, further eroding the hopes of those who placed bets on a white Christmas during last week's severe weather. | Thursday will see the freeze's hold begin to crumble as the milder weather pushes on, reinforced by further bands of damp and warmer weather from the Atlantic. The prospect for the rest of the week is one of the customary "unsettled" pattern that looks likely to continue for the rest of the month, further eroding the hopes of those who placed bets on a white Christmas during last week's severe weather. |
| Travel problems were easing as the fog started to lift on Wednesday morning but may resume with the arrival of roving areas of heavy rain. Gatwick airport scored one over its rival Heathrow by avoiding cancellations, but Heathrow staff said that the situation was already improving. | Travel problems were easing as the fog started to lift on Wednesday morning but may resume with the arrival of roving areas of heavy rain. Gatwick airport scored one over its rival Heathrow by avoiding cancellations, but Heathrow staff said that the situation was already improving. |
| "We expect the fog to lift between 9am and 10am," said a spokeswoman. "Visibility is already improving. There have been some delays as well as cancellations. There is bound to be a bit of a knock-on effect during the day. Also, some European airports are also affected by the cold weather." | "We expect the fog to lift between 9am and 10am," said a spokeswoman. "Visibility is already improving. There have been some delays as well as cancellations. There is bound to be a bit of a knock-on effect during the day. Also, some European airports are also affected by the cold weather." |
| The cancellations included flights to many German airports as well as Aberdeen, Nice, Stockholm and Warsaw. London City airport in the capital's former docklands cancelled six morning commuter flights to the continent. | The cancellations included flights to many German airports as well as Aberdeen, Nice, Stockholm and Warsaw. London City airport in the capital's former docklands cancelled six morning commuter flights to the continent. |
| Road and rail travel has also been disrupted with a section of the A1M closed on the fog-prone Vale of Mowbray in North Yorkshire between junctions 39 and 40. The effect of the freeze on overhead power lines led to delays of nearly an hour in the morning rush-hour between Bedford and Luton and a broken-down train added to problems around Watford Junction in Hertfordshire. | Road and rail travel has also been disrupted with a section of the A1M closed on the fog-prone Vale of Mowbray in North Yorkshire between junctions 39 and 40. The effect of the freeze on overhead power lines led to delays of nearly an hour in the morning rush-hour between Bedford and Luton and a broken-down train added to problems around Watford Junction in Hertfordshire. |
| Faults in the power supply and a signalling breakdown held up trains at Brighton, Lewes and Seaford in East Sussex and another broken-down train delayed commuters between Edinburgh and Airdrie. London's underground saw long delays on the Metropolitan line made famous by the late poet laureate John Betjeman, who hymned the beauties of its commuting businesswomen and cosy, but currently fogbound, scenery. | Faults in the power supply and a signalling breakdown held up trains at Brighton, Lewes and Seaford in East Sussex and another broken-down train delayed commuters between Edinburgh and Airdrie. London's underground saw long delays on the Metropolitan line made famous by the late poet laureate John Betjeman, who hymned the beauties of its commuting businesswomen and cosy, but currently fogbound, scenery. |
| Nick Prebble of MeteoGroup said that light dustings of snow had settled along the coasts of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Hampshire, Sussex and Kent, and "snow-like grains" of frozen moisture from the fog would settle briefly on frozen ground elsewhere. He said: "The thick fog should linger in many places through the morning and into the afternoon. It will be a bitterly cold day wherever you are in the UK, and very grey where the fog stays. Northern England and parts of Wales are unlikely to see temperatures above freezing today, and it will stay around 4C (39F) to 6C (42.8) in the south." | Nick Prebble of MeteoGroup said that light dustings of snow had settled along the coasts of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Hampshire, Sussex and Kent, and "snow-like grains" of frozen moisture from the fog would settle briefly on frozen ground elsewhere. He said: "The thick fog should linger in many places through the morning and into the afternoon. It will be a bitterly cold day wherever you are in the UK, and very grey where the fog stays. Northern England and parts of Wales are unlikely to see temperatures above freezing today, and it will stay around 4C (39F) to 6C (42.8) in the south." |
| Rain is the next expected hazard, with four flood warnings and nine alerts in the south-west, which are expected to increase during the day. The Environment Agency also has two alerts on the river Derwent in North Yorkshire and four in Hampshire. | Rain is the next expected hazard, with four flood warnings and nine alerts in the south-west, which are expected to increase during the day. The Environment Agency also has two alerts on the river Derwent in North Yorkshire and four in Hampshire. |
| The fellwalker who died after falling 600ft from England's second highest mountain, Scafell, has been named as James Kirk Blackburn, 53, from Darrington near Pontefract in West Yorkshire. | The fellwalker who died after falling 600ft from England's second highest mountain, Scafell, has been named as James Kirk Blackburn, 53, from Darrington near Pontefract in West Yorkshire. |
| He died after slipping in icy conditions on the Lord's Rake, a rocky traverse that connects the sheer-sided crag of Scafell to the slightly higher neighbouring peak of Scafell Pike. | He died after slipping in icy conditions on the Lord's Rake, a rocky traverse that connects the sheer-sided crag of Scafell to the slightly higher neighbouring peak of Scafell Pike. |
| His 64-year-old companion, who was winched to safety by an RAF Sea King helicopter with the help of Wasdale and Duddon and Furness mountain rescue teams, has been discharged from West Cumberland hospital after treatment for shock and the effects of the cold. He is from Nottingham but has not been named. | His 64-year-old companion, who was winched to safety by an RAF Sea King helicopter with the help of Wasdale and Duddon and Furness mountain rescue teams, has been discharged from West Cumberland hospital after treatment for shock and the effects of the cold. He is from Nottingham but has not been named. |
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