Tag: snow and ice

Businesses urged to ‘be prepared’ as Britain set for snow and cold snap

  • Snow and sub-zero temperatures predicted in parts of UK this week
  • Commercial insurer NFU Mutual issues advice to businesses and retailers with cold snap set to hit
  • Businesses warned of risks of frozen pipes and dangerous ice on premises

Commercial insurer NFU Mutual is urging businesses to be prepared for heavy snow and freezing temperatures as icy weather is predicted this week.

After weeks of unsettled weather, a cold snap is expected throughout the week, with the Met Office warning of plunging temperatures and snow.

A yellow warning for snow and ice was issued on Monday, with snow showers and sub-zero temperatures predicted – bringing risks for businesses and the high street.

Zoe Knight, Head of Commercial at NFU Mutual, said: “While businesses will have rightly been focusing on the potential flood risks due to recent storms, we are now facing a period of colder weather and possible snow showers, which will bring a different set of risks.

“Retailers, hospitality, and independent businesses should all be prepared and take essential steps to keep themselves, their premises and their customers safe during adverse weather.

“NFU Mutual urges business owners to clear and grit pathways and car parks, include warning signage for customers, check your boilers have been serviced, ensure pipes are insulated and check your roof in preparation for the strain caused by potential snowfall.

“Don’t be complacent about the risks cold weather can pose to businesses and customers. As well as causing disruption across the UK, cold weather and snow storms can bring devastating damage to businesses, so it’s well worth taking simple steps to reduce the risk.”

Commercial insurer NFU Mutual’s cold-weather and snow advice to businesses

Safe premises:

  • Clear and grit pathways and car parks to ensure the surface isn’t dangerously slippery.
  • Use warning signs if safe to do so and where they do not obstruct pathways
  • Check your boiler has been serviced as winter months will put more strain on parts
  • Ensure pipes are insulated in unheated areas to avoid the risk of costly damage due to frozen pipes often resulting in water leaks
  • Make sure your heating is on a temperature setting high enough to prevent freezing of pipework when the premises are unattended
  • If a pipe does become frozen, turn off the water supply and then gently heat the relevant area. Flame producing equipment should not be used for this.
  • Make sure you know where the stopcock is in case you need to turn off your water supply. Have buckets or other containers available in case of emergency
  • Maintain roofs, gulleys, gutters and downpipes in good condition. The weight of accumulated snow can put added pressure on roofs, particularly if they are in poor condition.
  • Clear drains or ditches outside your business to allow melting snow to run away.

Safe people:

  • Make sure there is a place for your staff to keep warm or warm up, such as a rest room or kitchen where they can make a hot drink
  • If work rooms are cold, consider providing temporary extra heating – make sure they are in good working order and checked for electrical faults
  • Provide your staff with warm weather clothing if their work involves long spells of exposure to the cold
  • Avoid making non-essential business journeys in your vehicles unless it is safe to do so
  • If you decide to close your premises, notify customers and keep in touch with staff to avoid unnecessary journeys
  • Make sure you assess the risks from cold and adverse weather for all the work that is done as part of your business – don’t carry out a task if it’s not safe to do so.

Snow and Ice warnings issued

Warnings have been issued for snow and ice by the Met Office, as a northerly airflow will bring some disruptive weather through this week.

Yellow warnings for snow and ice have been issued with the focus of initial snow showers in northern and eastern areas of the UK.

5-10cm of snow could accumulate over northern Scotland and snow is likely within the warning area even to lower ground, with icy conditions likely to cause travel disruption.

The area of high pressure that has brought recent benign conditions will move away to the west at the start of the week, allowing a northerly airflow to sweep across the UK. The introduction of an arctic maritime airmass will bring snow showers to Scotland, Northern Ireland and along the east coast of England from Monday.

The snow showers will predominantly impact northern and eastern areas; however, it will be cold across the UK, with widespread freezing conditions overnight.

Deputy Chief Meteorologist, Chris Almond, said: “Very cold air will spread across the UK from late on Sunday through early next week. This brings with it snow even to low levels in the north and east through Monday and Tuesday, and in excess of 10cm could accumulate, most likely on high ground in the north, but also settling for a time at lower levels.

“With freezing overnight temperatures and the risk of ice, there’s a risk of some travel disruption and wintry hazards are likely to persist through much of next week, even further south for a time, so keep an eye on the Met Office forecast for the latest information.”

James Coles of Scottish Mountain Rescue and Team Leader at Moffat Mountain Rescue said: “The UK is entering a period of increasingly challenging weather conditions with snow, ice and gusty winds all featuring prominently in the forecast for the coming week. Upland areas, especially in the mountains, can see conditions change very rapidly and they may be markedly different from surrounding lowland areas.

“Met Office warnings come into force on Monday, but conditions ahead may deteriorate more quickly at higher elevations.”

Stay up to date with the Met Office forecast on social media, through our weather warnings and by checking our mountain area forecasts, which are written by trained meteorologists and are available under specialist forecasts on the Met Office website.

Cold weather alert

The UK Health Security Agency has issued Level 2 and Level 3 Cold Weather Alerts for the whole of England. These are likely to be reviewed and extended in the coming days.

Dr Agostinho Sousa, Head of Extreme Events and Health Protection at the UK Health Security Agency, said: “During periods like this, it is important to check in on family, friends and relatives who may be more vulnerable to the cold weather, as it can have a serious impact on health.

“If you have a pre-existing medical condition or are over the age of 65, it is important to try and heat your home to at least 18°C if you can.’’

Transport disruption

Stein Connelly, head of transport resilience (operations) at Transport Scotland, said: “We would urge the public to plan ahead, listen to Police Scotland travel advice, drive to the conditions, and also check before they travel. While our operating companies will be undertaking patrols and treatments and we are closely monitoring the network for impacts, it’s important to recognise that challenging conditions are likely early this week.

“Motorists can check with Traffic Scotland to make sure that their route is available. The new Traffic Scotland website gives people access to the latest travel information and the Traffic Scotland twitter page is also updated regularly.

“We know that stopping distances can be up to ten times greater in snow compared to dry roads so keep well back from the road user in front, check your windscreen washer levels, ensure your mobile phone is charged and have sufficient fuel and warm clothing in case your journey is delayed.”

Get advice for keeping your home warm, staying safe in snow, looking after your pets in cold weather and more as part of WeatherReady.

Further ahead

Temperatures are likely to stay well below average for much of this week, with an increasing chance of snow further south from Wednesday onwards.

Some uncertainty remains on exact positioning and timing of further wintry hazards as milder air attempts to move in from the southwest. Details will be refined for the latter half of the week, but broadly cold conditions with further wintry hazards is the most likely scenario.

Keep up to date with the latest forecast on our website, by following us on Twitter and Facebook. Keep track of current weather warnings on the weather warning page.

RoSPA urges caution during cold snap

Drive with caution to protect your life and loved ones, says leading accident prevention charity the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents

  • The UK is bracing itself for a gust of wintery weather that could lead to spike in fatal accidents
  • Drive safely to prevent accidents and save lives, says RoSPA – here’s how.

Motorists across the country are urged to drive with caution to avoid accidents as a gust of wintery conditions is set to hit the area at the start of next week. A Met office yellow warning is in place for many parts of the UK, as we expect to see sleet, rain and snow.

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), that has worked for more than 100 years to help people recognise and reduce their risk of accidents, at home, on the road, at work and in leisure, say that poor visibility, water-logged roads and slippery snow can all heighten the risk of a tragic car crash.

Advising on how to keep safe during the upcoming wintery snap, RoSPA says at this time of year, adapting our driving style is key.

Becky Guy, Road Safety Manager at RoSPA, said: “Adverse weather conditions and longer, darker evenings make winter a particularly hazardous time to drive, and as we expect to see next week, short bursts of extreme weather are not uncommon here in the UK. 

“These wintry conditions can decrease visibility, increase stopping distances and the risk of skidding, which can all increase the risk of being involved in a crash. If you can, avoid driving in such weather, and if you are expected to drive for work, do ask your employer about whether it has a winter driving policy.

“Things to check before you set off include that all of your lights are working and clean, your tyres are inflated correctly and have at least 3mm of tread, you have enough fuel or charge in the car for unforeseen events and a way of contacting someone in an emergency. Finally, if in doubt and you are able to, postpone your trip until conditions improve.”

Keeping safe in sleet, hail and snow

To help keep drivers safe, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents has shared its top winter driving tips to help keep drivers and riders safe.

Before your journey

  • Plan your journey, checking the traffic news and allowing extra time
  • If it has been snowing, be sure to remove snow from the top of your car so that it does not slide down and obstruct your view when driving
  • Check fuel or charge levels before you set off to allow for unexpected delays
  • If you drive an automatic car, check the handbook to see if there’s a winter driving mode setting
  • Assess whether your journey is essential, and speak to your employer about whether they have a winter driving policy

Driving on winter roads

  • Pull off in second gear, going gently on the clutch to avoid wheel-spin
  • Leave plenty of room between you and other road users, applying your brakes gradually and in good time
  • When driving uphill, check the road is clear and try to avoid stopping part way up to prevent you from rolling backwards
  • When driving downhill, keep it slow and use a low gear
  • Remember that braking distance can increase up to double in wet weather and by 10 times in icy weather

Council working ‘as fast as we can’ to grit roads, footpaths and cycleways

City council Environment Convener Cllr Lesley Macinnes comments on work to grit roads, footpaths and cycleways in the Capital as icy conditions continue:

She reported yesterday: “Like many other areas of Scotland, our staff have been working tirelessly and as quickly as possible to tackle the ice which set in after showers of freezing rain overnight.

“We gritted all priority routes last night (Sunday) which includes routes to hospitals, bus routes and other areas that most need it. We did this again today and we are gritting category two and three routes now that the easing in conditions has allowed us to do this.

“We have thousands of roads and footpaths/cycleways in Edinburgh and it also hasn’t helped that due to very low temperatures grit on footpaths and cycleways will take longer to be ground into ice than on roads so as low temperatures continue please take extra care if you need to be out and about.

“Our staff will continue to work round the clock to grit as much as we can while this cold snap continues. My thanks too to all the residents who’ve been out gritting local neighbourhood streets – we’re filling grit bins up again as quickly as we can and we’re deploying additional resource from other services to help us to do this over the course of the coming week.”

Weather warning: snow and ice

Police Scotland is advising drivers that the Met Office has issued a Yellow Weather Warning for snow and ice covering a number of areas across Scotland today (Thursday, 31 December).

The local authority areas affected will be Highland, Na h-Eileanan Siar, Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Moray, Angus, Clackmannanshire, Dundee, Falkirk, Fife, Perth and Kinross, Stirling, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Edinburgh, Midlothian Council, Scottish Borders, West Lothian, Argyll and Bute, East Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Glasgow, North Lanarkshire, Renfrewshire, South Ayrshire, South Lanarkshire, West Dunbartonshire.

The Met Office warning lasts until 2pm on Thursday, 31 December. Conditions for travel may be hazardous and extra caution should be exercised.

What to expect:

Snow and ice may bring some disruption late in to Thursday morning or early afternoon.

Northerly winds will bring showers of rain, sleet and snow across the north of Northern Ireland as well as northern, western and south of Scotland.

Snow accumulations will mostly be confined to ground above 100m away from coasts, but some temporary slushy deposits are possible to low levels at times. 1-3cm is likely to accumulate above 100m, and as much as 5-10cm above 250m, this mostly across high ground of Scotland. Some accumulations of 1-3 cm are likely, again mainly over higher ground, but 5 cm or more is possible over parts of southern Scotland.

What to do:

If you are travelling you should ensure that you and your vehicle are adequately prepared for the conditions, making sure you have sufficient fuel and supplies, such as warm clothing, food & water in the event of being delayed for several hours.

Make sure that there is sufficient tread on the tyres fitted to your vehicle, ensure tyres are correctly inflated and that the screen wash is filled.

Charge your mobile phone and have the ability to charge it further if necessary.

Plan your route as well as alternatives to your planned route.

Drive to the conditions, leaving sufficient distance between you and the vehicle in front to allow you to use smooth braking, steering and acceleration to minimise skid risk.

Listen to media broadcasts especially local radio and Traffic Scotland Radio or visit www.trafficscotland.org.

For public transport information visit www.travelinescotland.

Follow @policescotland and @trafficscotland on Twitter for regular and up to date travel information.