Winter of 2009–2010 in Europe
Encyclopedia
The winter of 2009–2010 in Europe was unusually cold. Globally, atypical weather patterns brought cold, moist air from the north. Weather systems were undergoing cyclogenesis from North American storms moving across the Atlantic Ocean
to the west, and saw many parts of Europe experiencing heavy snowfall and record-low temperatures. This led to a number of deaths, widespread transport disruption, power failures and the postponement of a number of sporting events.
, which has been known to have global effects—causing a change to the path of the jet stream
and affecting the North Atlantic oscillation
, reducing warm airflow into Europe. In the media, these events have been associated with global climate change; diverse opinions have been expressed as to whether this is an example of dramatic climate change, evidence against it or unrelated.
canton of Grisons saw a record-low overnight temperature of −32°C (−25.6°F). This snowfall led to the shutdown of Utrecht Centraal (the largest rail hub in the Netherlands). While snowfall on highways led to the busiest morning rush hour of 2009, with a total of 671 km (417 m) in traffic jams. The following day, heavy overnight snowfall caused widespread disruption across large parts of the South East
, East Anglia
, the East Midlands
and Yorkshire and the Humber
in Britain
. This snow was in the north half of a depression with east winds centered south of England. Several deaths attributed to the cold weather were reported.
During the night of 18–19 December, five Eurostar
trains were stuck in the Channel Tunnel
, trapping more than 2,000 people for up to 16 hours after the vehicles suffered electrical failures because of freezing overnight temperatures. Passengers were without heating, lighting and air-conditioning for several hours while food and water ran out. Some passengers were evacuated via service tunnels to car trains, while others were kept on their trains until the trains could be towed out. Eurostar added special services on the evening of 19 December to transport "vulnerable passengers" between London, Paris and Brussels. However, a service from Paris became the sixth train to break down after becoming stuck near Ebbsfleet
, Kent
. The cause of the breakdowns was unclear; Eurostar initially blamed the sudden contrast between freezing temperatures above ground and the 25 °C (77 °F) heat of the tunnel, which affected the high-speed engines.
On 20 December in the Netherlands
, the Royal Dutch Meteorological Institute (KNMI) issued an official weather alarm for the entire country following heavy snowfall (15 centimetre) in the west, which eventually spread to the entire country. In most cities bus services were halted and tram
service was halted in all four major cities.
In northern Italy
several locations recorded the lowest temperatures since 1985, with one low reaching −17 °C (1.4 °F).
Police in Poland
reported that 15 people froze to death in the country as overnight temperatures fell as low as -20 C and 47 people died indirectly as a result of the cold during the month of December. Public appeals were made to the Polish community to report any homeless or drunk people lying outdoors, in an attempt to reduce the number of deaths from exposure to the cold.
In Kosovo
, one person died and ten people were injured in traffic accidents because of poor weather conditions. Kosovo Police spokesperson, Arbër Beka, said that one person died in an accident which occurred near Đakovica; there were injuries reported in 16 traffic accidents, and a total of 74 accidents causing property damage. The local police called on residents to be careful on the roads because of the heavy snowfall and very difficult driving conditions.
On 21 December, the M25 motorway
and large parts of the M3, M4
, M40
, M1
and M11
motorways in the United Kingdom were brought to a standstill until late at night and many towns were gridlocked. About 100 people were able to travel from London Victoria Station to Ashford International railway station
on a steam train
hauled by the locomotive Tornado
. Widespread transport disruption affected parts of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland (except a few southern parts of Munster
).
In Bosnia and Herzegovina
, three people were found dead from hypothermia
in Sarajevo
and Teslić
.
. Particularly badly hit were north Hampshire
and the Thames Valley
in England. In Basingstoke
, some 3,000 motorists were forced to either abandon their vehicles or sleep in them overnight after becoming stuck in gridlocked traffic; approximately 2,000 cars were abandoned. The vehicle recovery service, AA
, accused some local authorities of not acting quickly enough to grit the roads, claiming some "key roads" had "not been gritted at all". The Local Government Association
dismissed the claims as "unverified, unsubstantiated and unjustified". A man found unconscious in his back garden on the Isle of Lewis, in the Outer Hebrides
, after a night out over the weekend died. A homeless charity in France reported that 12 people died during December as a result of the severe cold.
On 23 December, overnight temperatures in the U.K. once again dropped well below freezing. Dalwhinnie
in the central Highlands
of Scotland recorded a low of -16 C and Edinburgh
recorded -10 C, causing Scottish Transport Minister
Stewart Stevenson
to state that conditions on Scottish roads were at their worst in 20 years. Air travel was disrupted in the United Kingdom
, with Southampton Airport
cancelling (or diverting) all inbound and outbound flights until midday due to a frozen runway. Train services were cancelled for most of the day from Southampton Airport Parkway. A Ryanair
flight landing at Prestwick Airport overshot the runway; no injuries were reported and the airport was soon reopened. Two women were killed and more than 40 people injured following a coach crash on an ungritted country road in Cornwall, as a party returned from a trip to see Christmas lights in Mousehole
the previous evening. Weather forecasters warned of icy conditions and further snowfall into Christmas Eve
, particularly affecting northern England and the East Midlands.
In western Serbia
, rapidly melting snow caused the Jadar River in Loznica to flood and resulted in farmland being submerged. Danijela Despotović, of the Hydro-Meteorological Service of Serbia in Loznica, said that the temperature was -19 C in the town. Heavy snowfall began in Saint Petersburg
, Russia
. By 26 December the city was under 35 cm of snow, creating the largest December snowfall recorded in the city since 1881.
On Christmas Day, parts of Britain had a white Christmas
for the first time since 2004 after snow fell in northern and central Scotland and parts of England (including Nottinghamshire
). A man in Leeds
, West Yorkshire
, froze to death after spending 24 hours in his car. A total of 21 people were reported to have died during the cold spell in the U.K.
The Netherlands had its first white Christmas since 1981.
On 26 December (Boxing Day
), drivers in Northern Ireland were warned of icy conditions. Conditions in many other parts of the U.K. continued to improve as milder air moved in from the south. However, northern England and Scotland remained cold and nighttime temperatures continued to drop below freezing. Some Boxing Day
sporting fixtures were cancelled (or postponed) because of continuing icy conditions in certain areas, including the National Hunt meeting
at Towcester
and all but two of the Scottish Football League
's matches. Some parts of East Anglia
suffered electricity cuts, including Dedham
, Stratford St Mary
and parts of Colchester
; in more remote parts of the region, some were without power for 36 hours.
being the most-affected area, where between 12 and(-) fell.
Temperatures fell to -16 C in Tyndrum
overnight on 27–28 December, and to -14 C at Tulloch Bridge in the Highlands. The Met Office
issued fresh severe weather warnings and motorists were advised to drive with caution. The A75 between Stranraer
and Newton Stewart
was closed due to icy conditions; while the southbound carriageway of the A9 was blocked between the A824 and B8081 in Perth and Kinross
following an accident at Gleneagles
.
Temperatures dropped to -18 C in parts of the Highlands overnight on 28–29 December, with Braemar
recording Britain's lowest temperature of the Winter. Fresh travel warnings were issued on 29 December, as wintry conditions continued to cause problems on Scotland's roads. The runway of Inverness Airport
was briefly closed because of snow and ice, and ScotRail
reduced its service to and from Glasgow Central because of the severe conditions.
However, the snow and icy conditions were good for the Scottish ski
industry, which said the weather helped it to experience its best start to the season for several years. Warnings of heavy snow were issued for Wales, the Midlands, Yorkshire and Humber, north-west England, eastern and southern England. More snow began falling across parts of Wales/central and northern England on the evening of 29 December, with Wales recording the heaviest of the snow showers; some rural areas recording up to 30 centimetres (11.8 in). Snow was also reported in parts of the West Midlands region
and Yorkshire
.
On 30 December, Sportscotland Avalanche Information Service (SAIS) issued warnings about conditions on Scottish mountains. However, three people died in three large avalanches. Two climbers were killed as a result of a snow slide on Ben Nevis
, while a man was airlifted from Liathach
(a mountain in Torridon
) after getting into trouble, but died in hospital.
Continued icy weather in Scotland on New Year's Eve
led to the cancellation of Hogmanay
celebrations in Inverness
, amid concerns over public safety; New Year celebrations in other parts of Scotland went ahead as planned. Northeast Scotland experienced fresh snowfall during the afternoon and evening of 31 December. For a second time that week Inverness Airport
was closed, forcing several hundred passengers to make alternative arrangements. In Batley
, West Yorkshire
, 2,500 gallons of water leaked into the local gas network; 400 homes in Dewsbury
and Batley were without gas during subzero temperatures. The final homes were reconnected on 7 January. There was also heavy snowfall in Dublin, Ireland, leading to the closure of Dublin Airport for several hours disrupting flights.
In Dublin, the snow began 10 minutes before the New Year's Eve
countdown.
, Cumbria
and the Scottish Borders
. In some places it was as deep as 10 centimetres (3.9 in), and motorists were warned not to travel unless absolutely necessary. On 2 January, the synoptic position settled with the jet stream
in a route causing a blocking high in the eastern Atlantic. This diverted warm west winds to the south over the Mediterranean and subjected western Europe to cold north winds, warm weather around the Caspian Sea
and unusually cold weather in China. A weather front brought heavy snow to north west England
. In Britain many roads were closed, including part of the M9.
On 3 January parts of northeast England and Cumbria
had 6 centimetres (2.4 in) of snow, and Edinburgh had 9 centimetres (3.5 in). Europe's largest private-sector weather business, MeteoGroup
, announced that the previous month was the coldest December (on average) since 1996. Temperatures remained very cold throughout Ireland and Britain; however, Inverness Airport reopened after several days. It was announced that due to the cold snap, it would be illegal to shoot certain game birds. An all-time snow record in the Estonia
n capital, Tallinn
, was measured at 62 cm (two feet).
The next day in Scotland, Fife
Council became the first local authority to confirm that its supplies of grit were exhausted after it received less than it had ordered from suppliers. Ministers denied there was a shortage of grit and salt, insisting there were "very substantial" supplies for Scotland's roads. In its monthly summary Met Éireann, Ireland's weather service, said December was the coldest month for 28 years for most of the country and the coldest of any month since February 1986 at several stations. Wintry conditions returned to Europe, as much of the northern hemisphere
was gripped by intensely cold weather. 13 people died in Poland, bringing the total number of cold-related deaths in Poland to 122. In Switzerland
, ten skiers were reported dead or missing in avalanche
s. The worst incident occurred in the Diemtig Valley; avalanches hit a group of skiers and their rescuers, killing four people (including a doctor). Eight people were rescued, although three remained missing.
On 5 January, the Met Office
issued weather warnings for every region in the UK except the Northern Isles
. An extreme-weather warning was issued in the southern areas for overnight snowfall, which could bring accumulations from 25 to 40 cm (9.8 to 15.7 in). BBC Weather and the Met Office also warned that temperatures in the Highlands of Scotland could drop to -20 C later in the week. The Met Office also confirmed that the UK is experiencing the longest prolonged cold spell since 1981. 48 centimetres (18.9 in) of snow fell in Aviemore
, Scotland, and 3 to 4 ft (0.9144 to 1.2 ) of snow was recorded within the Cairngorms National Park. Most of Scotland had further snowfall during the night of 4–5 January.
The British Army
had to help stranded motorists in southern areas.
The Met Office confirmed that 40 centimetres (15.7 in) of snow fell in some parts of southern England. A severe warning issued by the Met Office
was in place for every region in the UK. Scottish First Minister
Alex Salmond
said Scotland was experiencing its worst winter since 1963.
Further deaths in Wales, Shetland and Aberdeenshire were recorded. Hawick
and most of the southern Scottish Borders was cut off from the rest of the country for two days, and roads in the southeast of England were left with traffic jams and abandoned cars. 8,000 schools were closed.
The lowest registered temperature on 7 January in Sweden was -40.8 C in Hemavan
. In the Netherlands and Belgium, road salt used to keep the roads clear of snow and ice was running out. National and secondary schools in Ireland were supposed to open after the Christmas break on this day; however, many were forced to close because of weather conditions. On 8 January, the Minister for Education announced that all schools were to remain closed until at least Thursday, 14 January.
On the Luas
Green line there were difficulties getting up slopes, such as those between Harcourt
and Charlemont and between Beechwood and Cowper. This had caused some delays (especially when salt was scarce for sand tanks on the trams) for Dublin pedestrians. Major reservoirs in County Cork
, County Dublin
and County Limerick
were critically low; in areas such as County Laois
and the rural areas of County Cork, bottled water was supplied by the Irish army. This had also been done for the people affected by floods in October and November 2009. The National Grid issued its second alert in three days, asking suppliers to provide more gas and some businesses to switch to other power sources, as gas usage hit record levels.
BBC News
reported heavy snowfall as far south as Granada
, Spain
on 8 January.
A new record of -9 C was also recorded in Dublin, Ireland
. Temperatures in County Limerick
dropped to -11.1 C. In Kuusamo
, Finland, the lowest registered temperature was -37.1 C.
In Norway, the temperature dropped to -42.4 C at Tynset
.
In Germany
more than 30 centimetres (11.8 in) of snow fell on the island of Rügen
, and the entire country was blanketed in snow. German officials also acknowledged a shortage of grit, and feared that high winds and drifting snow would lead to road closures.
In France, officials closed Autoroute 35
for trucks because of heavy snow, and over 400 truck drivers bound for Germany had to make an unscheduled overnight stop. In the early morning hours of 9 January, the autoroute was also closed to cars. The storm also grounded 160 flights at the Frankfurt am Main international airport.
Snow fell heavily in some parts of Spain. Prades (Tarragona, southern Catalonia) sported a 120 cm snow cover after a 30-plus- hour storm, which led to an 18-hour closure of the AP7 motorway at La Jonquera (at the Spanish/French border).
Overnight temperatures of -22.3 C were recorded in Altnaharra
in the Scottish Highlands
.
Deal
and Sandwich
in Kent
, England, were virtually cut off by snowdrifts on 9 January.
Snow showers persisted in the east of the UK. In the far south east, snow showers merged into longer and more persistent areas of snow. A low temperature of -14.5 °C was recorded at Tulloch Bridge. The football schedule was also heavily affected by the snowfall; all but seven games (two in both the Premier League and League 1
and three in the Championship
) were postponed in England, and all but five Scottish Cup
games were played in Scotland. Several Guinness Premiership
games and horse-racing meets were cancelled as well. Dublin Airport was closed once again. Flights to Kraków
in southern Poland were diverted to the airport in Katowice
, due to fog which prevented planes from landing. Met Éireann issued a weather warning with up to 10 centimetres (3.9 in) of snow forecast.
Belgium was covered with another thick layer of snow, in some central provinces (such as Flemish Brabant
) as deep as 10 centimetres (3.9 in). Since the snow (and possible traffic chaos) had been forecast for several days, this resulted in few people leaving their homes; traffic accidents were minor and few. At Brussels Airport
slight delays were inevitable, but mostly the result of airports in neighbouring countries coping with heavier snow. In Denmark, army personnel carriers were once again deployed in the southern part of the country to assist emergency services as drifting continued to cause traffic problems.
from the Atlantic on 10 January and began to infiltrate the coldest areas of Britain, bringing a thaw to southwest England. The weather in London cleared, allowing for transport access (particularly by road) across all areas of north and central London. A heavy snowstorm, named "Daisy", struck northern Germany
on 9 and 10 January. Especially along the coast and on the islands of Usedom
, Rügen
and Fehmarn
, snowdrifts made roads, parts of the coastal autobahn and rail tracks impassable. In northern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and eastern Schleswig-Holstein
secondary roads were closed and trains cancelled, while snowplows and excavators struggled to keep the main routes free. Since the storms were accumulating increasingly-large snowbanks, hundreds of cars were stranded on Autobahn 20
near Jarmen
during the night, and a train derailed after striking a snowbank near Miltzow
. In Denmark, drifting continued to disrupt traffic in the southern part of the country; army personnel carriers were used to assist emergency services. In Spain, a snowstorm swept the country;Madrid
had more than 10 hours of snow. Parts of southern Spain, such as Seville
, saw their first snow since 1954.
On 11 January, England and Wales continued to feel the effects of the depression in the Western Approaches
. In the Republic of Ireland, the Department of Education ordered all schools to close for the day due to heavy snowfall.
Due to a mix of bitter cold and the milder system trying to push in from the Atlantic, heavy snowfall in the United Kingdom
resumed; there were fresh accumulations (on top of existing snow) of up to 15 centimetres (6 inches) on 12 January in Wales
and South-west England. Snow later fell in The Midlands
and South-east England. In Holmfirth
and Barnsley
in north England, freezing rain
or sleet
fell onto deep-frozen roads; this created so much black ice
that some people found that the only safe way to move about on roads was by crawling. Hospital accident and emergency units in the Sheffield, Rotherham and Barnsley areas of South Yorkshire reported being inundated by people with fractures and sprains after slipping on what one Council official in Sheffield described as the worst black ice seen in the area in living memory.
Many schools were again closed across England and Wales, and there were many road accidents and closures. The M25 motorway
was down to one lane between Leatherhead
and Reigate
; roads across southern Great Britain
were untreated, wreaking havoc on commuters. Gatwick and Birmingham
airports were closed, and many flights were delayed at Heathrow. During 13 January the weather system continued north, affecting much of Northern England
before reaching Scotland
. Parts of northern France
were also affected by snowfall. At least 22 people died due to lower temperatures in Romania
over a five-day period.
in five hours during a strong Atlantic winter storm, producing severe flooding and mudslides. The unusual storm was fed by warmer-than-normal sea surface temperature
s in the Northeastern Atlantic related to El Niño, and a slowing of the North Atlantic Gyre
.
in Western Europe
, affecting mainly Spain
, France
, Germany
and the Benelux
region. Numerous levee
s were breached in western France.
on 8 March left 220,000 people around the Catalonia
n city of Girona
without electricity due to a fault in a high-tension power cable. The adverse weather cut off railway lines and roads, and Spain's border with France
at La Junquera was closed. Many schools cancelled classes on both 8 and 9 March. The snowfall was reported to be the region's worst for 25 years, and the heaviest in Barcelona
since 1962. The storm also dumped snow on Mallorca
and the Balearic Islands
, causing snow and highway cancellations. Waves in the Mediterranean reached up to 7.7 m (25.3 ft) and winds reached 133 kilometres per hour (82.6 mph). Heavy snow up to 40 cm (15.7 in) fell in southern France (including Provence
and the Pyrenees
), forcing flight cancellations, airport and motorway closures. Over one metre of snow fell in the mountains, and numerous power outages occurred in Corsica
. In Greece dust storm
s from the Sahara Desert reached the capital, Athens
, on strong southerly winds. The eastern end of the storm coincided with the 2010 Elâzığ earthquake
.
), causing numerous traffic accidents and over two dozen injuries.
and Scotland
, where it stayed for 61 hours. The Met Office
issued emergency and extreme-weather warnings for Scotland and Northern Ireland for severe blizzard
s, very heavy snow, heavy rain, gale-force winds, and severe drifting. On March 29, snow began to fall heavily over Scotland and Northern Ireland; however, the 30th was far more severe, as gusts up to 80 mph brought trees down. There were accumulations of 30–60 cm of snow in Northern Ireland and Scotland; 3 ft of snow fell on Aviemore
.
On March 31, a girl was killed in Lanarkshire
when a school bus
skidded on ice and crashed. Over 70,000 homes in Northern Ireland and Scotland were without power, and newborn lamb
s died in the extreme weather conditions. Thousands of cars were stranded on roads during the day; 300 cars were stranded in Northern Ireland by 5-foot snowdrift
s. Strong winds brought down trees and created waves up to 20 ft. Caravan
s at Kingshorn were destroyed and a marina
in the Lothians was bombarded and demolished by a surge of rain-driven waves. A seal at St. Andrews Sea Life Centre went missing in the strong waves, and a river in Musselburgh
overflowed. This snow event was the second-most disruptive of this winter in the UK.
estimated that the cold weather could cause up to 40,000 excess deaths in the UK. 139 people died in Poland–most of them reportedly homeless.
, London Heathrow Airport
, Birmingham Airport, Cardiff Airport, London Luton Airport
, George Best Belfast City Airport
, Southampton Airport
, Blackpool International Airport, Newcastle Airport
, Durham Tees Valley Airport
, Exeter International Airport
, Plymouth City Airport
and London Stansted Airport
, Liverpool John Lennon Airport
, Manchester Airport, Leeds Bradford Airport, Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield
and Bristol International Airport
. Some train services ran with revised timetables. Trains in Kent were delayed for up to three and a half hours, with hundreds of travellers left stranded. In late December, Eurostar
trains from Paris
or Brussels
towards St. Pancras station
were severely delayed, with delays of up to 16 hours. All Eurostar services were cancelled from 19–21 December; delays and service cancellations continued after that.
Buses on the Isle of Wight
, Gloucester
(skeleton service was being run in Gloucester
during Wednesday 6 January) and across southern Hampshire
were suspended on 5 January owing to heavy snowfall, leaving a large number of people stranded. Limited services were back in operation on 7 January in Southampton
and Portsmouth
on the mainland and between Newport
and the other main towns on the Isle of Wight
. All services in Gosport
, Fareham
, Locks Heath
, Titchfield
, Whiteley
and Warsash
areas were suspended and remained so for two days because of road conditions. As of 8 January, one service was running between Gosport
and Fareham
and one between Fareham
and Southampton
(although this service was unable to serve Locks Heath or Titchfield). The A3
and the A3M around Horndean
and the Hindhead
area and the A1 experienced disruption; many minor roads were closed and only the main motorway and A-road network were passable for much of 5, 6 and 7 January. In North East England
the A1(M) and A19 suffered challenging conditions (mainly in the evenings and at night) as a result of temperatures dropping to well below zero Celsius. Bus service between Newcastle and Sunderland experienced some disruption, as local operators suspended services.
closed on Wednesday, 6 January and again on Friday, 8 January. Cork Airport closed on Sunday, 10 January at 6:30 pm and did not reopen until 12:30 pm on Monday, 11 January. Dublin Bus
temporarily cancelled all services, and Knock Airport also closed.
All schools were ordered to close for a day on Monday 11 January, due to the snow. Dublin's tram service Luas
was badly affected; most drivers and bus riders were afraid to travel on the ice-covered roads.
halted between 19 and 22 February. Cold weather, blizzards and drifting snow blocked 300 rail switches at the Ilmala rail yard, making traffic impossible. More than half the long-distance trains were cancelled, leaving hundreds of Lapland-bound winter holiday travellers stranded at Helsinki Central Railway station. Trains which were not cancelled ran several hours late. The amount of snow cleared
from Helsinki
streets and transferred to snow collection sites was 210,000 truckloads.
region during March 2010 led to cancellation of Ryanair
flights to and from Girona Airport on 9 March.
and potatoes were threatened by the icy temperatures, and harvesting of carrot
s, turnip
s, sugar beet
and parsnip
s was delayed since the fields are frozen. The harsh winter was estimated to cost the economy of the United Kingdom
£700 million. A new British record for natural gas
consumption reached 454000000 cubic metres (16,032,858,460.5 cu ft) on 7 January, according to the National Grid. Approximately 12,000 schools were closed across the United Kingdom. A drop in about 30% of UK retail sales was estimated, with uneven consequences; pubs, out-of-town shopping centres and department stores were worst affected. Local-store sales and the sale of sledges, cat litter and contraceptives increased. The Scottish Highlands
saw a boost to tourism and winter sports. The Cairngorms
, near Aviemore
, received its best business since the 1970s as thousands of tourists visited the area.
, Premier League, Football League Cup
and the FA Cup
. There were further postponements in Scotland (with 15 football matches postponed on 2 January), and in Serie A
, Serie B
, Lega Pro Prima Divisione, Lega Pro Seconda Divisione and Serie D
Italian football matches. Football in Northern Ireland was also affected. In rugby union
, there were cancellations in the English Premiership, Celtic League, the All-Ireland League, the Top 14, a Heineken Cup fixture in Brussels
scheduled for 19 December, and a Heineken Cup fixture in Newport
. Other affected sports included Gaelic football
's O'Byrne Cup
, Dr. McKenna Cup, McGrath Cup
and FBD League games. The field hockey
Irish Junior Cup
also saw postponements.
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
to the west, and saw many parts of Europe experiencing heavy snowfall and record-low temperatures. This led to a number of deaths, widespread transport disruption, power failures and the postponement of a number of sporting events.
Possible causes
It has been postulated that the event was caused by El NiñoEl Niño-Southern Oscillation
El Niño/La Niña-Southern Oscillation, or ENSO, is a quasiperiodic climate pattern that occurs across the tropical Pacific Ocean roughly every five years...
, which has been known to have global effects—causing a change to the path of the jet stream
Jet stream
Jet streams are fast flowing, narrow air currents found in the atmospheres of some planets, including Earth. The main jet streams are located near the tropopause, the transition between the troposphere and the stratosphere . The major jet streams on Earth are westerly winds...
and affecting the North Atlantic oscillation
North Atlantic oscillation
The North Atlantic oscillation is a climatic phenomenon in the North Atlantic Ocean of fluctuations in the difference of atmospheric pressure at sea level between the Icelandic low and the Azores high. Through east-west oscillation motions of the Icelandic low and the Azores high, it controls the...
, reducing warm airflow into Europe. In the media, these events have been associated with global climate change; diverse opinions have been expressed as to whether this is an example of dramatic climate change, evidence against it or unrelated.
16–21 December
Light snowfall occurred in the U.K. on 16 December and weather warnings were given on most local TV stations; there were some traffic jams towards the south. The snow later spread towards France and northern Spain. In mainland Europe, early snowfall was seen across much of the western half of the continent. On 17 December, the SwissSwitzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
canton of Grisons saw a record-low overnight temperature of −32°C (−25.6°F). This snowfall led to the shutdown of Utrecht Centraal (the largest rail hub in the Netherlands). While snowfall on highways led to the busiest morning rush hour of 2009, with a total of 671 km (417 m) in traffic jams. The following day, heavy overnight snowfall caused widespread disruption across large parts of the South East
South East England
South East England is one of the nine official regions of England, designated in 1994 and adopted for statistical purposes in 1999. It consists of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
, East Anglia
East Anglia
East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
, the East Midlands
East Midlands
The East Midlands is one of the regions of England, consisting of most of the eastern half of the traditional region of the Midlands. It encompasses the combined area of Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Rutland, Northamptonshire and most of Lincolnshire...
and Yorkshire and the Humber
Yorkshire and the Humber
Yorkshire and the Humber is one of the nine regions of England and formally one of the government office regions. It covers most of the historic county of Yorkshire, along with the part of northern Lincolnshire that was, from 1974 to 1996, within the former shire county of Humberside. The...
in Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. This snow was in the north half of a depression with east winds centered south of England. Several deaths attributed to the cold weather were reported.
During the night of 18–19 December, five Eurostar
Eurostar
Eurostar is a high-speed railway service connecting London with Paris and Brussels. All its trains traverse the Channel Tunnel between England and France, owned and operated separately by Eurotunnel....
trains were stuck in the Channel Tunnel
Channel Tunnel
The Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...
, trapping more than 2,000 people for up to 16 hours after the vehicles suffered electrical failures because of freezing overnight temperatures. Passengers were without heating, lighting and air-conditioning for several hours while food and water ran out. Some passengers were evacuated via service tunnels to car trains, while others were kept on their trains until the trains could be towed out. Eurostar added special services on the evening of 19 December to transport "vulnerable passengers" between London, Paris and Brussels. However, a service from Paris became the sixth train to break down after becoming stuck near Ebbsfleet
Ebbsfleet International railway station
Ebbsfleet International railway station is a railway station in Ebbsfleet Valley, in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, 10 miles outside the eastern boundary of Greater London, England. It is near Dartford and the Bluewater shopping centre to the west and Gravesend to the east. Ebbsfleet International...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
. The cause of the breakdowns was unclear; Eurostar initially blamed the sudden contrast between freezing temperatures above ground and the 25 °C (77 °F) heat of the tunnel, which affected the high-speed engines.
On 20 December in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, the Royal Dutch Meteorological Institute (KNMI) issued an official weather alarm for the entire country following heavy snowfall (15 centimetre) in the west, which eventually spread to the entire country. In most cities bus services were halted and tram
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
service was halted in all four major cities.
In northern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
several locations recorded the lowest temperatures since 1985, with one low reaching −17 °C (1.4 °F).
Police in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
reported that 15 people froze to death in the country as overnight temperatures fell as low as -20 C and 47 people died indirectly as a result of the cold during the month of December. Public appeals were made to the Polish community to report any homeless or drunk people lying outdoors, in an attempt to reduce the number of deaths from exposure to the cold.
In Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
, one person died and ten people were injured in traffic accidents because of poor weather conditions. Kosovo Police spokesperson, Arbër Beka, said that one person died in an accident which occurred near Đakovica; there were injuries reported in 16 traffic accidents, and a total of 74 accidents causing property damage. The local police called on residents to be careful on the roads because of the heavy snowfall and very difficult driving conditions.
On 21 December, the M25 motorway
M25 motorway
The M25 motorway, or London Orbital, is a orbital motorway that almost encircles Greater London, England, in the United Kingdom. The motorway was first mooted early in the 20th century. A few sections, based on the now abandoned London Ringways plan, were constructed in the early 1970s and it ...
and large parts of the M3, M4
M4 motorway
The M4 motorway links London with South Wales. It is part of the unsigned European route E30. Other major places directly accessible from M4 junctions are Reading, Swindon, Bristol, Newport, Cardiff and Swansea...
, M40
M40 motorway
The M40 motorway is a motorway in the British transport network that forms a major part of the connection between London and Birmingham. Part of this road forms a section of the unsigned European route E05...
, M1
M1 motorway
The M1 is a north–south motorway in England primarily connecting London to Leeds, where it joins the A1 near Aberford. While the M1 is considered to be the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the United Kingdom, the first road to be built to motorway standard in the country was the...
and M11
M11 motorway
The M11 motorway in England is a major road running approximately north from the North Circular Road in South Woodford in north-east London to the A14, north-west of Cambridge.-Route:...
motorways in the United Kingdom were brought to a standstill until late at night and many towns were gridlocked. About 100 people were able to travel from London Victoria Station to Ashford International railway station
Ashford International railway station
Ashford International railway station serves Ashford in Kent, England. Services are provided by Southeastern, Southern and Eurostar.International services use platforms 3 & 4, whilst domestic trains use the original platforms 1 & 2, and a new island built when the Channel Tunnel opened...
on a steam train
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
hauled by the locomotive Tornado
LNER Peppercorn Class A1 60163 Tornado
60163 Tornado is a main-line steam locomotive built in Darlington, England. Completed in 2008, Tornado was the first such locomotive built in the United Kingdom since Evening Star, the last steam locomotive built by British Railways, in 1960...
. Widespread transport disruption affected parts of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland (except a few southern parts of Munster
Munster
Munster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the south of Ireland. In Ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial purposes...
).
In Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
, three people were found dead from hypothermia
Hypothermia
Hypothermia is a condition in which core temperature drops below the required temperature for normal metabolism and body functions which is defined as . Body temperature is usually maintained near a constant level of through biologic homeostasis or thermoregulation...
in Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
and Teslić
Teslic
Teslić is a town and municipality in north-central Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in the central part of the Republika Srpska entity. Teslić is located on the Usora River.-History:...
.
22–26 December
Fresh overnight snowfall brought renewed problems to parts of the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. Particularly badly hit were north Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
and the Thames Valley
Thames Valley
The Thames Valley Region is a loose term for the English counties and towns roughly following the course of the River Thames as it flows from Oxfordshire in the west to London in the east. It includes parts of Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, North Hampshire, Surrey and west London...
in England. In Basingstoke
Basingstoke
Basingstoke is a town in northeast Hampshire, in south central England. It lies across a valley at the source of the River Loddon. It is southwest of London, northeast of Southampton, southwest of Reading and northeast of the county town, Winchester. In 2008 it had an estimated population of...
, some 3,000 motorists were forced to either abandon their vehicles or sleep in them overnight after becoming stuck in gridlocked traffic; approximately 2,000 cars were abandoned. The vehicle recovery service, AA
The Automobile Association
The Automobile Association , a British motoring association founded in 1905 was demutualised in 1999 to become a private limited company which currently provides car insurance, driving lessons, breakdown cover, loans and motoring advice, and other services...
, accused some local authorities of not acting quickly enough to grit the roads, claiming some "key roads" had "not been gritted at all". The Local Government Association
Local Government Association
The Local Government Association is a voluntary lobbying organisation acting as the voice of the local government sector in England and Wales, which seeks to be an authoritative and effective advocate on its behalf....
dismissed the claims as "unverified, unsubstantiated and unjustified". A man found unconscious in his back garden on the Isle of Lewis, in the Outer Hebrides
Outer Hebrides
The Outer Hebrides also known as the Western Isles and the Long Island, is an island chain off the west coast of Scotland. The islands are geographically contiguous with Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, one of the 32 unitary council areas of Scotland...
, after a night out over the weekend died. A homeless charity in France reported that 12 people died during December as a result of the severe cold.
On 23 December, overnight temperatures in the U.K. once again dropped well below freezing. Dalwhinnie
Dalwhinnie
Dalwhinnie "Meeting Place" is a small village in the Scottish Highlands.-Location:Dalwhinnie sits at an altitude of 351 m. It is one of the coldest villages in the UK, having an average annual temperature of 6.5oC, making it suitable for winter walking and mountaineering.It is north of Drumochter,...
in the central Highlands
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
of Scotland recorded a low of -16 C and Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
recorded -10 C, causing Scottish Transport Minister
Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change
The Minister for Housing and Transport is a member of the Scottish Government who works to the Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment...
Stewart Stevenson
Stewart Stevenson
Stewart Stevenson is a Scottish politician who became a member of the Scottish Parliament in 2001....
to state that conditions on Scottish roads were at their worst in 20 years. Air travel was disrupted in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, with Southampton Airport
Southampton Airport
Southampton Airport is the 20th largest airport in the UK, located north north-east of Southampton, in the Borough of Eastleigh within Hampshire, England....
cancelling (or diverting) all inbound and outbound flights until midday due to a frozen runway. Train services were cancelled for most of the day from Southampton Airport Parkway. A Ryanair
Ryanair
Ryanair is an Irish low-cost airline. Its head office is at Dublin Airport and its primary operational bases at Dublin Airport and London Stansted Airport....
flight landing at Prestwick Airport overshot the runway; no injuries were reported and the airport was soon reopened. Two women were killed and more than 40 people injured following a coach crash on an ungritted country road in Cornwall, as a party returned from a trip to see Christmas lights in Mousehole
Mousehole
Mousehole is a village and fishing port in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated approximately 2½ miles south of Penzance on the shore of Mount's Bay.The village is in the civil parish of Penzance...
the previous evening. Weather forecasters warned of icy conditions and further snowfall into Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth that takes place on December 25...
, particularly affecting northern England and the East Midlands.
In western Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, rapidly melting snow caused the Jadar River in Loznica to flood and resulted in farmland being submerged. Danijela Despotović, of the Hydro-Meteorological Service of Serbia in Loznica, said that the temperature was -19 C in the town. Heavy snowfall began in Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. By 26 December the city was under 35 cm of snow, creating the largest December snowfall recorded in the city since 1881.
On Christmas Day, parts of Britain had a white Christmas
White Christmas
A white Christmas refers to the presence of snow on Christmas Day. This phenomenon is most common in the northern countries of the Northern Hemisphere...
for the first time since 2004 after snow fell in northern and central Scotland and parts of England (including Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...
). A man in Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
, froze to death after spending 24 hours in his car. A total of 21 people were reported to have died during the cold spell in the U.K.
The Netherlands had its first white Christmas since 1981.
On 26 December (Boxing Day
Boxing Day
Boxing Day is a bank or public holiday that occurs on 26 December, or the first or second weekday after Christmas Day, depending on national or regional laws. It is observed in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and some other Commonwealth nations. In Ireland, it is recognized as...
), drivers in Northern Ireland were warned of icy conditions. Conditions in many other parts of the U.K. continued to improve as milder air moved in from the south. However, northern England and Scotland remained cold and nighttime temperatures continued to drop below freezing. Some Boxing Day
Boxing Day
Boxing Day is a bank or public holiday that occurs on 26 December, or the first or second weekday after Christmas Day, depending on national or regional laws. It is observed in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and some other Commonwealth nations. In Ireland, it is recognized as...
sporting fixtures were cancelled (or postponed) because of continuing icy conditions in certain areas, including the National Hunt meeting
National Hunt racing
National Hunt racing is the official name given to the sport of horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Ireland in which the horses are required to jump over obstacles called hurdles or fences...
at Towcester
Towcester
Towcester , the Roman town of Lactodorum, is a small town in south Northamptonshire, England.-Etymology:Towcester comes from the Old English Tófe-ceaster. Tófe refers to the River Tove; Bosworth and Toller compare it to the "Scandinavian proper names" Tófi and Tófa...
and all but two of the Scottish Football League
Scottish Football League
The Scottish Football League is a league of football teams in Scotland, comprising theScottish First Division, Scottish Second Division and Scottish Third Division. From the league's foundation in 1890 until the breakaway Scottish Premier League was formed in 1998, the Scottish Football League...
's matches. Some parts of East Anglia
East Anglia
East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
suffered electricity cuts, including Dedham
Dedham, Essex
Dedham is a village within the borough of Colchester in northeast Essex, England, situated on the River Stour and on the border of Essex and Suffolk...
, Stratford St Mary
Stratford St Mary
Stratford St. Mary is a village in Suffolk, England in the heart of 'Constable Country'. John Constable painted a number of paintings in and around Stratford....
and parts of Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
; in more remote parts of the region, some were without power for 36 hours.
27–31 December
Parts of England again suffered power cuts on 26–27 December. Scotland experienced fresh snowfall overnight; PerthshirePerthshire
Perthshire, officially the County of Perth , is a registration county in central Scotland. It extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, Rannoch Moor and Ben Lui in the west, and Aberfoyle in the south...
being the most-affected area, where between 12 and(-) fell.
Temperatures fell to -16 C in Tyndrum
Tyndrum
Tyndrum is a small village in Scotland. Its Gaelic name translates as "the house on the ridge". It lies in Strathfillan, at the southern edge of Rannoch Moor.The village is notable mainly for being at an important crossroads of transport routes...
overnight on 27–28 December, and to -14 C at Tulloch Bridge in the Highlands. The Met Office
Met Office
The Met Office , is the United Kingdom's national weather service, and a trading fund of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills...
issued fresh severe weather warnings and motorists were advised to drive with caution. The A75 between Stranraer
Stranraer
Stranraer is a town in the southwest of Scotland. It lies in the west of Dumfries and Galloway and in the county of Wigtownshire.Stranraer lies on the shores of Loch Ryan on the northern side of the isthmus joining the Rhins of Galloway to the mainland...
and Newton Stewart
Newton Stewart
Newton Stewart is a burgh town in the south of Scotland in the west of the region of Dumfries and Galloway and in the county of Wigtownshire....
was closed due to icy conditions; while the southbound carriageway of the A9 was blocked between the A824 and B8081 in Perth and Kinross
Perth and Kinross
Perth and Kinross is one of 32 council areas in Scotland, and a Lieutenancy Area. It borders onto the Aberdeenshire, Angus, Dundee City, Fife, Clackmannanshire, Stirling, Argyll and Bute and Highland council areas. Perth is the administrative centre...
following an accident at Gleneagles
Gleneagles, Scotland
Gleneagles is a glen which connects with Glen Devon to form a pass through the Ochil Hills of Perth and Kinross in Scotland...
.
Temperatures dropped to -18 C in parts of the Highlands overnight on 28–29 December, with Braemar
Braemar
Braemar is a village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, around west of Aberdeen in the Highlands. It is the closest significantly-sized settlement to the upper course of the River Dee sitting at an altitude of ....
recording Britain's lowest temperature of the Winter. Fresh travel warnings were issued on 29 December, as wintry conditions continued to cause problems on Scotland's roads. The runway of Inverness Airport
Inverness Airport
Inverness Airport is an international airport situated at Dalcross, north east of the city of Inverness in Highland, Scotland. The airport is the main gateway for travellers to the north of Scotland with a wide range of scheduled services throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland, and limited...
was briefly closed because of snow and ice, and ScotRail
ScotRail
ScotRail was a brand name used for all Scottish regional and commuter rail services, including some cross-border services, from 1997 to 2004....
reduced its service to and from Glasgow Central because of the severe conditions.
However, the snow and icy conditions were good for the Scottish ski
Ski
A ski is a long, flat device worn on the foot, usually attached through a boot, designed to help the wearer slide smoothly over snow. Originally intended as an aid to travel in snowy regions, they are now mainly used for recreational and sporting purposes...
industry, which said the weather helped it to experience its best start to the season for several years. Warnings of heavy snow were issued for Wales, the Midlands, Yorkshire and Humber, north-west England, eastern and southern England. More snow began falling across parts of Wales/central and northern England on the evening of 29 December, with Wales recording the heaviest of the snow showers; some rural areas recording up to 30 centimetres (11.8 in). Snow was also reported in parts of the West Midlands region
West Midlands (region)
The West Midlands is an official region of England, covering the western half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It contains the second most populous British city, Birmingham, and the larger West Midlands conurbation, which includes the city of Wolverhampton and large towns of Dudley,...
and Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
.
On 30 December, Sportscotland Avalanche Information Service (SAIS) issued warnings about conditions on Scottish mountains. However, three people died in three large avalanches. Two climbers were killed as a result of a snow slide on Ben Nevis
Ben Nevis
Ben Nevis is the highest mountain in the British Isles. It is located at the western end of the Grampian Mountains in the Lochaber area of the Scottish Highlands, close to the town of Fort William....
, while a man was airlifted from Liathach
Liathach
Liathach is one of the most famous of the Torridon Hills. It lies to the north of the A896 road, in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland, and has two peaks of Munro status: Spidean a' Choire Leith at the east of the main ridge, and Mullach an Rathain at the western end of the mountain...
(a mountain in Torridon
Torridon
Torridon is a small village in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. However the name is also applied to the area surrounding the village, particularly the Torridon Hills, mountains to the north of Glen Torridon. It lies on the shore of Loch Torridon.Torridon is on the west coast of Scotland, ...
) after getting into trouble, but died in hospital.
Continued icy weather in Scotland on New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
led to the cancellation of Hogmanay
Hogmanay
Hogmanay is the Scots word for the last day of the year and is synonymous with the celebration of the New Year in the Scottish manner...
celebrations in Inverness
Inverness
Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
, amid concerns over public safety; New Year celebrations in other parts of Scotland went ahead as planned. Northeast Scotland experienced fresh snowfall during the afternoon and evening of 31 December. For a second time that week Inverness Airport
Inverness Airport
Inverness Airport is an international airport situated at Dalcross, north east of the city of Inverness in Highland, Scotland. The airport is the main gateway for travellers to the north of Scotland with a wide range of scheduled services throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland, and limited...
was closed, forcing several hundred passengers to make alternative arrangements. In Batley
Batley
Batley is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. It lies southeast of Bradford, southwest of Leeds and north of Dewsbury, near the M62 motorway. It has a population of 49,448 . Other nearby towns include Morley to the northeast, Ossett to the southeast...
, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
, 2,500 gallons of water leaked into the local gas network; 400 homes in Dewsbury
Dewsbury
Dewsbury is a minster town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. It is to the west of Wakefield, east of Huddersfield and south of Leeds...
and Batley were without gas during subzero temperatures. The final homes were reconnected on 7 January. There was also heavy snowfall in Dublin, Ireland, leading to the closure of Dublin Airport for several hours disrupting flights.
In Dublin, the snow began 10 minutes before the New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
countdown.
1–5 January
Fresh overnight snowfall on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day caused disruption in North East EnglandNorth East England
North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...
, Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
and the Scottish Borders
Scottish Borders
The Scottish Borders is one of 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It is bordered by Dumfries and Galloway in the west, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian in the north west, City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian to the north; and the non-metropolitan counties of Northumberland...
. In some places it was as deep as 10 centimetres (3.9 in), and motorists were warned not to travel unless absolutely necessary. On 2 January, the synoptic position settled with the jet stream
Jet stream
Jet streams are fast flowing, narrow air currents found in the atmospheres of some planets, including Earth. The main jet streams are located near the tropopause, the transition between the troposphere and the stratosphere . The major jet streams on Earth are westerly winds...
in a route causing a blocking high in the eastern Atlantic. This diverted warm west winds to the south over the Mediterranean and subjected western Europe to cold north winds, warm weather around the Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...
and unusually cold weather in China. A weather front brought heavy snow to north west England
North West England
North West England, informally known as The North West, is one of the nine official regions of England.North West England had a 2006 estimated population of 6,853,201 the third most populated region after London and the South East...
. In Britain many roads were closed, including part of the M9.
On 3 January parts of northeast England and Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
had 6 centimetres (2.4 in) of snow, and Edinburgh had 9 centimetres (3.5 in). Europe's largest private-sector weather business, MeteoGroup
MeteoGroup
MeteoGroup is Europe’s largest private sector weather business with forecasting offices in ten European countries and the US, sales representatives in the Far East and Middle East, and customers worldwide....
, announced that the previous month was the coldest December (on average) since 1996. Temperatures remained very cold throughout Ireland and Britain; however, Inverness Airport reopened after several days. It was announced that due to the cold snap, it would be illegal to shoot certain game birds. An all-time snow record in the Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
n capital, Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
, was measured at 62 cm (two feet).
The next day in Scotland, Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
Council became the first local authority to confirm that its supplies of grit were exhausted after it received less than it had ordered from suppliers. Ministers denied there was a shortage of grit and salt, insisting there were "very substantial" supplies for Scotland's roads. In its monthly summary Met Éireann, Ireland's weather service, said December was the coldest month for 28 years for most of the country and the coldest of any month since February 1986 at several stations. Wintry conditions returned to Europe, as much of the northern hemisphere
Northern Hemisphere
The Northern Hemisphere is the half of a planet that is north of its equator—the word hemisphere literally means “half sphere”. It is also that half of the celestial sphere north of the celestial equator...
was gripped by intensely cold weather. 13 people died in Poland, bringing the total number of cold-related deaths in Poland to 122. In Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, ten skiers were reported dead or missing in avalanche
Avalanche
An avalanche is a sudden rapid flow of snow down a slope, occurring when either natural triggers or human activity causes a critical escalating transition from the slow equilibrium evolution of the snow pack. Typically occurring in mountainous terrain, an avalanche can mix air and water with the...
s. The worst incident occurred in the Diemtig Valley; avalanches hit a group of skiers and their rescuers, killing four people (including a doctor). Eight people were rescued, although three remained missing.
On 5 January, the Met Office
Met Office
The Met Office , is the United Kingdom's national weather service, and a trading fund of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills...
issued weather warnings for every region in the UK except the Northern Isles
Northern Isles
The Northern Isles is a chain of islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The climate is cool and temperate and much influenced by the surrounding seas. There are two main island groups: Shetland and Orkney...
. An extreme-weather warning was issued in the southern areas for overnight snowfall, which could bring accumulations from 25 to 40 cm (9.8 to 15.7 in). BBC Weather and the Met Office also warned that temperatures in the Highlands of Scotland could drop to -20 C later in the week. The Met Office also confirmed that the UK is experiencing the longest prolonged cold spell since 1981. 48 centimetres (18.9 in) of snow fell in Aviemore
Aviemore
Aviemore is a town and tourist resort, situated within the Cairngorms National Park in the Highlands of Scotland. It is in the Badenoch and Strathspey committee area, within the Highland council area. The town is popular for skiing and other winter sports, and for hill-walking in the Cairngorm...
, Scotland, and 3 to 4 ft (0.9144 to 1.2 ) of snow was recorded within the Cairngorms National Park. Most of Scotland had further snowfall during the night of 4–5 January.
6–9 January
The synoptic situation in northern Europe settled into a steady northeast wind, which brought snow showers and belts of snow.The British Army
British Armed Forces
The British Armed Forces are the armed forces of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.Also known as Her Majesty's Armed Forces and sometimes legally the Armed Forces of the Crown, the British Armed Forces encompasses three professional uniformed services, the Royal Navy, the...
had to help stranded motorists in southern areas.
The Met Office confirmed that 40 centimetres (15.7 in) of snow fell in some parts of southern England. A severe warning issued by the Met Office
Met Office
The Met Office , is the United Kingdom's national weather service, and a trading fund of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills...
was in place for every region in the UK. Scottish First Minister
First Minister of Scotland
The First Minister of Scotland is the political leader of Scotland and head of the Scottish Government. The First Minister chairs the Scottish Cabinet and is primarily responsible for the formulation, development and presentation of Scottish Government policy...
Alex Salmond
Alex Salmond
Alexander Elliot Anderson "Alex" Salmond MSP is a Scottish politician and current First Minister of Scotland. He became Scotland's fourth First Minister in May 2007. He is the Leader of the Scottish National Party , having served as Member of the Scottish Parliament for Gordon...
said Scotland was experiencing its worst winter since 1963.
Further deaths in Wales, Shetland and Aberdeenshire were recorded. Hawick
Hawick
Hawick is a town in the Scottish Borders of south east Scotland. It is south-west of Jedburgh and south-southeast of Selkirk. It is one of the farthest towns from the sea in Scotland, in the heart of Teviotdale, and the biggest town in the former county of Roxburghshire. Hawick's architecture is...
and most of the southern Scottish Borders was cut off from the rest of the country for two days, and roads in the southeast of England were left with traffic jams and abandoned cars. 8,000 schools were closed.
The lowest registered temperature on 7 January in Sweden was -40.8 C in Hemavan
Hemavan
Hemavan is a locality situated in Storuman Municipality, Västerbotten County, Sweden with 216 inhabitants in 2005.It is located on European route E12 between Storuman and Mo i Rana. Hemavan is most famous for being a family-friendly ski resort...
. In the Netherlands and Belgium, road salt used to keep the roads clear of snow and ice was running out. National and secondary schools in Ireland were supposed to open after the Christmas break on this day; however, many were forced to close because of weather conditions. On 8 January, the Minister for Education announced that all schools were to remain closed until at least Thursday, 14 January.
On the Luas
Luas
Luas , also promoted in the development stage as the Dublin Light Rail System, is a tram or light rail system serving Dublin, the first such system in the decades since the closure of the last of the Dublin tramways. In 2007, the system carried 28.4 million passengers, a growth of 10% since...
Green line there were difficulties getting up slopes, such as those between Harcourt
Harcourt Street railway station
Harcourt Street railway station is a former railway terminus in Dublin. The station served as the terminus of the line from Dublin to the town of Bray in County Wicklow, although it opened in 1859 after the initial opening of the railway line itself....
and Charlemont and between Beechwood and Cowper. This had caused some delays (especially when salt was scarce for sand tanks on the trams) for Dublin pedestrians. Major reservoirs in County Cork
County Cork
County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...
, County Dublin
County Dublin
County Dublin is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Dublin Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the city of Dublin which is the capital of Ireland. County Dublin was one of the first of the parts of Ireland to be shired by King John of England following the...
and County Limerick
County Limerick
It is thought that humans had established themselves in the Lough Gur area of the county as early as 3000 BC, while megalithic remains found at Duntryleague date back further to 3500 BC...
were critically low; in areas such as County Laois
County Laois
County Laois is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Midlands Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It was formerly known as Queen's County until the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. The county's name was formerly spelt as Laoighis and Leix. Laois County Council...
and the rural areas of County Cork, bottled water was supplied by the Irish army. This had also been done for the people affected by floods in October and November 2009. The National Grid issued its second alert in three days, asking suppliers to provide more gas and some businesses to switch to other power sources, as gas usage hit record levels.
BBC News
BBC News
BBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
reported heavy snowfall as far south as Granada
Granada
Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, the Beiro, the Darro and the Genil. It sits at an elevation of 738 metres above sea...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
on 8 January.
A new record of -9 C was also recorded in Dublin, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. Temperatures in County Limerick
Limerick
Limerick is the third largest city in the Republic of Ireland, and the principal city of County Limerick and Ireland's Mid-West Region. It is the fifth most populous city in all of Ireland. When taking the extra-municipal suburbs into account, Limerick is the third largest conurbation in the...
dropped to -11.1 C. In Kuusamo
Kuusamo
Kuusamo is a town and municipality in Finland. It is located in the Oulu province and is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is ....
, Finland, the lowest registered temperature was -37.1 C.
In Norway, the temperature dropped to -42.4 C at Tynset
Tynset
Tynset is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Østerdalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Tynset.-Name:...
.
In Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
more than 30 centimetres (11.8 in) of snow fell on the island of Rügen
Rügen
Rügen is Germany's largest island. Located in the Baltic Sea, it is part of the Vorpommern-Rügen district of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.- Geography :Rügen is located off the north-eastern coast of Germany in the Baltic Sea...
, and the entire country was blanketed in snow. German officials also acknowledged a shortage of grit, and feared that high winds and drifting snow would lead to road closures.
In France, officials closed Autoroute 35
A35 autoroute
The A35 autoroute is a toll free highway in north eastern France. It is also known as the autoroute des cigognes and the Voie Rapide du Piémont des Vosges. It connects the German border in the Rhine valley with the Swiss frontier via Strasbourg...
for trucks because of heavy snow, and over 400 truck drivers bound for Germany had to make an unscheduled overnight stop. In the early morning hours of 9 January, the autoroute was also closed to cars. The storm also grounded 160 flights at the Frankfurt am Main international airport.
Snow fell heavily in some parts of Spain. Prades (Tarragona, southern Catalonia) sported a 120 cm snow cover after a 30-plus- hour storm, which led to an 18-hour closure of the AP7 motorway at La Jonquera (at the Spanish/French border).
Overnight temperatures of -22.3 C were recorded in Altnaharra
Altnaharra
-Notable persons:*Linda Norgrove, kidnapped by the Taliban in Afghanistan, and killed by a US grenade during a rescue effort.-External links:**...
in the Scottish Highlands
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
.
Deal
Deal, Kent
Deal is a town in Kent England. It lies on the English Channel eight miles north-east of Dover and eight miles south of Ramsgate. It is a former fishing, mining and garrison town...
and Sandwich
Sandwich, Kent
Sandwich is a historic town and civil parish on the River Stour in the Non-metropolitan district of Dover, within the ceremonial county of Kent, south-east England. It has a population of 6,800....
in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, England, were virtually cut off by snowdrifts on 9 January.
Snow showers persisted in the east of the UK. In the far south east, snow showers merged into longer and more persistent areas of snow. A low temperature of -14.5 °C was recorded at Tulloch Bridge. The football schedule was also heavily affected by the snowfall; all but seven games (two in both the Premier League and League 1
Football League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
and three in the Championship
Football League Championship
The Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
) were postponed in England, and all but five Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
games were played in Scotland. Several Guinness Premiership
Guinness Premiership
The English Premiership, also currently known as the Aviva Premiership because of the league's sponsorship by Aviva, is a professional league competition for rugby union football clubs in the top division of the English rugby system. There are twelve clubs in the Premiership...
games and horse-racing meets were cancelled as well. Dublin Airport was closed once again. Flights to Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
in southern Poland were diverted to the airport in Katowice
Katowice
Katowice is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, on the Kłodnica and Rawa rivers . Katowice is located in the Silesian Highlands, about north of the Silesian Beskids and about southeast of the Sudetes Mountains.It is the central district of the Upper Silesian Metropolis, with a population of 2...
, due to fog which prevented planes from landing. Met Éireann issued a weather warning with up to 10 centimetres (3.9 in) of snow forecast.
Belgium was covered with another thick layer of snow, in some central provinces (such as Flemish Brabant
Flemish Brabant
Flemish Brabant is a province of Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders on the Belgian provinces of Antwerp, Limburg, Liège, Walloon Brabant, Hainaut and East Flanders. Flemish Brabant also completely surrounds the Brussels-Capital Region. Its capital is Leuven...
) as deep as 10 centimetres (3.9 in). Since the snow (and possible traffic chaos) had been forecast for several days, this resulted in few people leaving their homes; traffic accidents were minor and few. At Brussels Airport
Brussels Airport
Brussels Airport is an international airport northeast of Brussels, Belgium. The airport is partially in Zaventem and partially in the Diegem area of Machelen, both located in the Flemish Region of Belgium.Brussels Airport currently consists of 54 contact gates, and a total of 109 gates...
slight delays were inevitable, but mostly the result of airports in neighbouring countries coping with heavier snow. In Denmark, army personnel carriers were once again deployed in the southern part of the country to assist emergency services as drifting continued to cause traffic problems.
10–26 January
A large depression moved into the Western ApproachesWestern Approaches
The Western Approaches is a rectangular area of the Atlantic ocean lying on the western coast of Great Britain. The rectangle is higher than it is wide, the north and south boundaries defined by the north and south ends of the British Isles, the eastern boundary lying on the western coast, and the...
from the Atlantic on 10 January and began to infiltrate the coldest areas of Britain, bringing a thaw to southwest England. The weather in London cleared, allowing for transport access (particularly by road) across all areas of north and central London. A heavy snowstorm, named "Daisy", struck northern Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
on 9 and 10 January. Especially along the coast and on the islands of Usedom
Usedom
Usedom is a Baltic Sea island on the border between Germany and Poland. It is situated north of the Szczecin Lagoon estuary of the River Oder in Pomerania...
, Rügen
Rügen
Rügen is Germany's largest island. Located in the Baltic Sea, it is part of the Vorpommern-Rügen district of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.- Geography :Rügen is located off the north-eastern coast of Germany in the Baltic Sea...
and Fehmarn
Fehmarn
Fehmarn is an island and - since 2003 - a town on this island in the Baltic Sea, off the eastern coast of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, and ca. 18 kilometers south of the Danish island of Lolland...
, snowdrifts made roads, parts of the coastal autobahn and rail tracks impassable. In northern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and eastern Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein is the northernmost of the sixteen states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Schleswig...
secondary roads were closed and trains cancelled, while snowplows and excavators struggled to keep the main routes free. Since the storms were accumulating increasingly-large snowbanks, hundreds of cars were stranded on Autobahn 20
Bundesautobahn 20
is an autobahn in Germany. It is colloquially known as Ostseeautobahn or Küstenautobahn due to its geographic location near the Baltic Sea coastline...
near Jarmen
Jarmen
Jarmen is a town in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. It is situated on the southern bank of the river Peene, 20 km south of Greifswald. Founded during the Ostsiedlung in the medieval terrae Miserez and Ploth, Jarmen remained a rural town at an...
during the night, and a train derailed after striking a snowbank near Miltzow
Miltzow
Miltzow is a village and a former municipality in the Vorpommern-Rügen district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Since 7 June 2009, it is part of the Sundhagen municipality.-Transport:...
. In Denmark, drifting continued to disrupt traffic in the southern part of the country; army personnel carriers were used to assist emergency services. In Spain, a snowstorm swept the country;Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
had more than 10 hours of snow. Parts of southern Spain, such as Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
, saw their first snow since 1954.
On 11 January, England and Wales continued to feel the effects of the depression in the Western Approaches
Western Approaches
The Western Approaches is a rectangular area of the Atlantic ocean lying on the western coast of Great Britain. The rectangle is higher than it is wide, the north and south boundaries defined by the north and south ends of the British Isles, the eastern boundary lying on the western coast, and the...
. In the Republic of Ireland, the Department of Education ordered all schools to close for the day due to heavy snowfall.
Due to a mix of bitter cold and the milder system trying to push in from the Atlantic, heavy snowfall in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
resumed; there were fresh accumulations (on top of existing snow) of up to 15 centimetres (6 inches) on 12 January in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and South-west England. Snow later fell in The Midlands
English Midlands
The Midlands, or the English Midlands, is the traditional name for the area comprising central England that broadly corresponds to the early medieval Kingdom of Mercia. It borders Southern England, Northern England, East Anglia and Wales. Its largest city is Birmingham, and it was an important...
and South-east England. In Holmfirth
Holmfirth
Holmfirth is a small town located on the A6024 Woodhead Road in the Holme Valley, within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England. Centred upon the confluence of the Holme and Ribble rivers, Holmfirth is south of Huddersfield and from Glossop. It mostly consists of...
and Barnsley
Barnsley
Barnsley is a town in South Yorkshire, England. It lies on the River Dearne, north of the city of Sheffield, south of Leeds and west of Doncaster. Barnsley is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley, of which Barnsley is the largest and...
in north England, freezing rain
Freezing rain
Freezing rain is the name given to rain that falls when surface temperatures are below freezing. The raindrops become supercooled while passing through a sub-freezing layer of air, many hundred feet , just above the surface, and then freeze upon impact with any object they encounter. The resulting...
or sleet
Sleet
Sleet refers to two distinct forms of precipitation:*Rain and snow mixed, snow that partially melts as it falls. *Ice pellets, one of three forms of precipitation in a US-style "wintry mix", the other two being snow and freezing rain. The latter is referred to as sleet mainly by the United States...
fell onto deep-frozen roads; this created so much black ice
Black ice
Black ice, sometimes called glare ice or clear ice, refers to a thin coating of glazed ice on a surface.While not truly black, it is virtually transparent, allowing black asphalt/macadam roadways to be seen through it, hence the term "black ice"...
that some people found that the only safe way to move about on roads was by crawling. Hospital accident and emergency units in the Sheffield, Rotherham and Barnsley areas of South Yorkshire reported being inundated by people with fractures and sprains after slipping on what one Council official in Sheffield described as the worst black ice seen in the area in living memory.
Many schools were again closed across England and Wales, and there were many road accidents and closures. The M25 motorway
M25 motorway
The M25 motorway, or London Orbital, is a orbital motorway that almost encircles Greater London, England, in the United Kingdom. The motorway was first mooted early in the 20th century. A few sections, based on the now abandoned London Ringways plan, were constructed in the early 1970s and it ...
was down to one lane between Leatherhead
Leatherhead
Leatherhead is a town in the County of Surrey, England, on the River Mole, part of Mole Valley district. It is thought to be of Saxon origin...
and Reigate
Reigate
Reigate is a historic market town in Surrey, England, at the foot of the North Downs, and in the London commuter belt. It is one of the main constituents of the Borough of Reigate and Banstead...
; roads across southern Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
were untreated, wreaking havoc on commuters. Gatwick and Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
airports were closed, and many flights were delayed at Heathrow. During 13 January the weather system continued north, affecting much of Northern England
Northern England
Northern England, also known as the North of England, the North or the North Country, is a cultural region of England. It is not an official government region, but rather an informal amalgamation of counties. The southern extent of the region is roughly the River Trent, while the North is bordered...
before reaching Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. Parts of northern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
were also affected by snowfall. At least 22 people died due to lower temperatures in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
over a five-day period.
20 February
At least 43 people were killed after more than a month's worth of rain fell in southern MadeiraMadeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
in five hours during a strong Atlantic winter storm, producing severe flooding and mudslides. The unusual storm was fed by warmer-than-normal sea surface temperature
Sea surface temperature
Sea surface temperature is the water temperature close to the oceans surface. The exact meaning of surface varies according to the measurement method used, but it is between and below the sea surface. Air masses in the Earth's atmosphere are highly modified by sea surface temperatures within a...
s in the Northeastern Atlantic related to El Niño, and a slowing of the North Atlantic Gyre
North Atlantic Gyre
The North Atlantic Gyre, located in the Atlantic Ocean, is one of the five major oceanic gyres. It includes the Gulf Stream and contains the Sargasso Sea. This gyre is similar to the North Pacific Gyre in the way it traps man-made ocean debris in the North Atlantic Garbage Patch, similar to the...
.
26–28 February
At least 62 people were killed (51 in France) and 12 were missing during a European windstormEuropean windstorm
A European windstorm is a severe cyclonic windstorm associated with areas of low atmospheric pressure that track across the North Atlantic towards northwestern Europe. They are most common in the winter months...
in Western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
, affecting mainly Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and the Benelux
Benelux
The Benelux is an economic union in Western Europe comprising three neighbouring countries, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. These countries are located in northwestern Europe between France and Germany...
region. Numerous levee
Levee
A levee, levée, dike , embankment, floodbank or stopbank is an elongated naturally occurring ridge or artificially constructed fill or wall, which regulates water levels...
s were breached in western France.
8–10 March
Heavy snowfall in SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
on 8 March left 220,000 people around the Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
n city of Girona
Girona
Girona is a city in the northeast of Catalonia, Spain at the confluence of the rivers Ter, Onyar, Galligants and Güell, with an official population of 96,236 in January 2009. It is the capital of the province of the same name and of the comarca of the Gironès...
without electricity due to a fault in a high-tension power cable. The adverse weather cut off railway lines and roads, and Spain's border with France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
at La Junquera was closed. Many schools cancelled classes on both 8 and 9 March. The snowfall was reported to be the region's worst for 25 years, and the heaviest in Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
since 1962. The storm also dumped snow on Mallorca
Mallorca
Majorca or Mallorca is an island located in the Mediterranean Sea, one of the Balearic Islands.The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Cabrera Archipelago is administratively grouped with Majorca...
and the Balearic Islands
Balearic Islands
The Balearic Islands are an archipelago of Spain in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula.The four largest islands are: Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza and Formentera. The archipelago forms an autonomous community and a province of Spain with Palma as the capital...
, causing snow and highway cancellations. Waves in the Mediterranean reached up to 7.7 m (25.3 ft) and winds reached 133 kilometres per hour (82.6 mph). Heavy snow up to 40 cm (15.7 in) fell in southern France (including Provence
Provence
Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
and the Pyrenees
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
), forcing flight cancellations, airport and motorway closures. Over one metre of snow fell in the mountains, and numerous power outages occurred in Corsica
Corsica
Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
. In Greece dust storm
Dust storm
A dust / sand storm is a meteorological phenomenon common in arid and semi-arid regions. Dust storms arise when a gust front or other strong wind blows loose sand and dirt from a dry surface. Particles are transported by saltation and suspension, causing soil to move from one place and deposition...
s from the Sahara Desert reached the capital, Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, on strong southerly winds. The eastern end of the storm coincided with the 2010 Elâzığ earthquake
2010 Elâzığ earthquake
The 2010 Elâzığ earthquake was a 6.1 Mw earthquake that occurred on 8 March 2010 at 02:32 UTC . The epicentre of the quake was Başyurt in Elâzığ province, in eastern Turkey. Initial reports in global media said as many as 57 people had died. Reports in the Turkish media two days after the quake...
.
12 March
A snowstorm dumped over 30 centimetres of snow in southern Germany (including BavariaBavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
), causing numerous traffic accidents and over two dozen injuries.
29 March–1 April
A massive snowstorm travelled north through the UK until it reached Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, where it stayed for 61 hours. The Met Office
Met Office
The Met Office , is the United Kingdom's national weather service, and a trading fund of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills...
issued emergency and extreme-weather warnings for Scotland and Northern Ireland for severe blizzard
Blizzard
A blizzard is a severe snowstorm characterized by strong winds. By definition, the difference between blizzard and a snowstorm is the strength of the wind. To be a blizzard, a snow storm must have winds in excess of with blowing or drifting snow which reduces visibility to 400 meters or ¼ mile or...
s, very heavy snow, heavy rain, gale-force winds, and severe drifting. On March 29, snow began to fall heavily over Scotland and Northern Ireland; however, the 30th was far more severe, as gusts up to 80 mph brought trees down. There were accumulations of 30–60 cm of snow in Northern Ireland and Scotland; 3 ft of snow fell on Aviemore
Aviemore
Aviemore is a town and tourist resort, situated within the Cairngorms National Park in the Highlands of Scotland. It is in the Badenoch and Strathspey committee area, within the Highland council area. The town is popular for skiing and other winter sports, and for hill-walking in the Cairngorm...
.
On March 31, a girl was killed in Lanarkshire
Lanarkshire
Lanarkshire or the County of Lanark ) is a Lieutenancy area, registration county and former local government county in the central Lowlands of Scotland...
when a school bus
School bus
A school bus is a type of bus designed and manufactured for student transport: carrying children and teenagers to and from school and school events...
skidded on ice and crashed. Over 70,000 homes in Northern Ireland and Scotland were without power, and newborn lamb
Domestic sheep
Sheep are quadrupedal, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Like all ruminants, sheep are members of the order Artiodactyla, the even-toed ungulates. Although the name "sheep" applies to many species in the genus Ovis, in everyday usage it almost always refers to Ovis aries...
s died in the extreme weather conditions. Thousands of cars were stranded on roads during the day; 300 cars were stranded in Northern Ireland by 5-foot snowdrift
Snowdrift
A snowdrift is a deposit of snow sculpted by wind into a mound during a snowstorm. Snowdrifts resemble sand dunes and are formed in a similar manner, namely, by wind moving light snow and depositing it when the wind is slowed, usually against a stationary object. Snow normally crests and slopes...
s. Strong winds brought down trees and created waves up to 20 ft. Caravan
Travel trailer
A travel trailer or caravan is towed behind a road vehicle to provide a place to sleep which is more comfortable and protected than a tent . It provides the means for people to have their own home on a journey or a vacation, without relying on a motel or hotel, and enables them to stay in places...
s at Kingshorn were destroyed and a marina
Marina
A marina is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats.A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo from freighters....
in the Lothians was bombarded and demolished by a surge of rain-driven waves. A seal at St. Andrews Sea Life Centre went missing in the strong waves, and a river in Musselburgh
Musselburgh
Musselburgh is the largest settlement in East Lothian, Scotland, on the coast of the Firth of Forth, six miles east of Edinburgh city centre.-History:...
overflowed. This snow event was the second-most disruptive of this winter in the UK.
Deaths
By 7 January 2010, 22 people died in the UK because of the freezing conditions. The Department of HealthDepartment of Health (United Kingdom)
The Department of Health is a department of the United Kingdom government with responsibility for government policy for health and social care matters and for the National Health Service in England along with a few elements of the same matters which are not otherwise devolved to the Scottish,...
estimated that the cold weather could cause up to 40,000 excess deaths in the UK. 139 people died in Poland–most of them reportedly homeless.
United Kingdom
The following airports were at some point closed: London Gatwick AirportLondon Gatwick Airport
Gatwick Airport is located 3.1 miles north of the centre of Crawley, West Sussex, and south of Central London. Previously known as London Gatwick,In 2010, the name changed from London Gatwick Airport to Gatwick Airport...
, London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport or Heathrow , in the London Borough of Hillingdon, is the busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the third busiest airport in the world in terms of total passenger traffic, handling more international passengers than any other airport around the globe...
, Birmingham Airport, Cardiff Airport, London Luton Airport
London Luton Airport
London Luton Airport is an international airport located east of the town centre in the Borough of Luton in Bedfordshire, England and is north of Central London. The airport is from Junction 10a of the M1 motorway...
, George Best Belfast City Airport
George Best Belfast City Airport
George Best Belfast City Airport is a single-runway airport in Belfast, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Situated adjacent to the Port of Belfast it is from Belfast City Centre. It shares the site with the Short Brothers/Bombardier aircraft manufacturing facility...
, Southampton Airport
Southampton Airport
Southampton Airport is the 20th largest airport in the UK, located north north-east of Southampton, in the Borough of Eastleigh within Hampshire, England....
, Blackpool International Airport, Newcastle Airport
Newcastle Airport
Newcastle International Airport is located in Woolsington in the City of Newcastle upon Tyne, England, north-west of the city centre. In 2010 it was the 11th busiest airport in the United Kingdom....
, Durham Tees Valley Airport
Durham Tees Valley Airport
Durham Tees Valley Airport is an international airport in north east England, located southeast of Darlington, about southwest of Middlesbrough and south of Durham. The airport serves County Durham and parts of North Yorkshire, and is in Middleton St George in the borough of Darlington...
, Exeter International Airport
Exeter International Airport
Exeter International Airport is an airport located at Clyst Honiton in the District of East Devon close to the city of Exeter and within the county of Devon, South West England....
, Plymouth City Airport
Plymouth City Airport
Plymouth City Airport is an airport located within the City of Plymouth north northeast of the city centre in Devon, England. The airport opened on this site in 1925 and was officially opened by the Edward VIII, as Prince of Wales, in 1931...
and London Stansted Airport
London Stansted Airport
-Cargo:-Statistics:-Infrastructure:-Terminal and satellite buildings:Stansted is the newest passenger airport of all the main London airports. The terminal is an oblong glass building, and is separated in to three areas: Check-in concourse, arrivals and departures...
, Liverpool John Lennon Airport
Liverpool John Lennon Airport
Liverpool John Lennon Airport is an international airport serving the city of Liverpool and the North West of England. Formerly known as Speke Airport, RAF Speke, and Liverpool Airport the airport is located within the City of Liverpool adjacent to the estuary of the River Mersey some southeast...
, Manchester Airport, Leeds Bradford Airport, Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield
Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield
Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield is an international airport located at the former RAF Finningley airbase at Finningley, in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster within South Yorkshire, England. The airport lies southeast of Doncaster and east of Sheffield.The airport is operated by Peel...
and Bristol International Airport
Bristol International Airport
Bristol Airport , located at Lulsgate Bottom in North Somerset, is the commercial airport serving the city of Bristol, England and the surrounding area. At first it was named Bristol Lulsgate Airport and from March 1997 to March 2010 it was known as Bristol International Airport...
. Some train services ran with revised timetables. Trains in Kent were delayed for up to three and a half hours, with hundreds of travellers left stranded. In late December, Eurostar
Eurostar
Eurostar is a high-speed railway service connecting London with Paris and Brussels. All its trains traverse the Channel Tunnel between England and France, owned and operated separately by Eurotunnel....
trains from Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
or Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
towards St. Pancras station
St Pancras railway station
St Pancras railway station, also known as London St Pancras and since 2007 as St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus celebrated for its Victorian architecture. The Grade I listed building stands on Euston Road in St Pancras, London Borough of Camden, between the...
were severely delayed, with delays of up to 16 hours. All Eurostar services were cancelled from 19–21 December; delays and service cancellations continued after that.
Buses on the Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
, Gloucester
Gloucester
Gloucester is a city, district and county town of Gloucestershire in the South West region of England. Gloucester lies close to the Welsh border, and on the River Severn, approximately north-east of Bristol, and south-southwest of Birmingham....
(skeleton service was being run in Gloucester
Gloucester
Gloucester is a city, district and county town of Gloucestershire in the South West region of England. Gloucester lies close to the Welsh border, and on the River Severn, approximately north-east of Bristol, and south-southwest of Birmingham....
during Wednesday 6 January) and across southern Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
were suspended on 5 January owing to heavy snowfall, leaving a large number of people stranded. Limited services were back in operation on 7 January in Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
and Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
on the mainland and between Newport
Newport, Isle of Wight
Newport is a civil parish and a county town of the Isle of Wight, an island off the south coast of England. Newport has a population of 23,957 according to the 2001 census...
and the other main towns on the Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
. All services in Gosport
Gosport
Gosport is a town, district and borough situated on the south coast of England, within the county of Hampshire. It has approximately 80,000 permanent residents with a further 5,000-10,000 during the summer months...
, Fareham
Fareham
The market town of Fareham lies in the south east of Hampshire, England, between the cities of Southampton and Portsmouth, roughly in the centre of the South Hampshire conurbation.It gives its name to the borough comprising the town and the surrounding area...
, Locks Heath
Locks Heath
Locks Heath is a western residential suburb of Fareham, in the south of Hampshire, England. It lies to the southeast of Sarisbury east of Warsash, to the west of Titchfield, and to the south of Park Gate and Swanwick...
, Titchfield
Titchfield
Titchfield is a village in southern Hampshire, by the River Meon. The village has a history stretching back to the 6th century. During the medieval period, the village operated a small port and market...
, Whiteley
Whiteley
Whiteley is a community in the county of Hampshire, England, near Fareham. The development straddles the boundary between two council districts: the Borough of Fareham to the south and east, and the city of Winchester to the north and west.-Location:...
and Warsash
Warsash
Warsash is a village in southern Hampshire, England, situated at the mouth of the River Hamble, west of the area known as Locks Heath. Boating plays an important part in the village's economy, and the village has a sailing club...
areas were suspended and remained so for two days because of road conditions. As of 8 January, one service was running between Gosport
Gosport
Gosport is a town, district and borough situated on the south coast of England, within the county of Hampshire. It has approximately 80,000 permanent residents with a further 5,000-10,000 during the summer months...
and Fareham
Fareham
The market town of Fareham lies in the south east of Hampshire, England, between the cities of Southampton and Portsmouth, roughly in the centre of the South Hampshire conurbation.It gives its name to the borough comprising the town and the surrounding area...
and one between Fareham
Fareham
The market town of Fareham lies in the south east of Hampshire, England, between the cities of Southampton and Portsmouth, roughly in the centre of the South Hampshire conurbation.It gives its name to the borough comprising the town and the surrounding area...
and Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
(although this service was unable to serve Locks Heath or Titchfield). The A3
A3 road
The A3, known as the Portsmouth Road for much of its length, is a dual carriageway, or expressway, which follows the historic route between London and Portsmouth passing close to Kingston upon Thames, Guildford, Haslemere and Petersfield. For much of its length, it is classified as a trunk road...
and the A3M around Horndean
Horndean
Horndean is a village and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is 8 miles north of Portsmouth.The nearest railway station is 2.2 miles southeast of the village at Rowlands Castle....
and the Hindhead
Hindhead
Hindhead is a village in Surrey, England, about 11 miles south-west of Guildford. Neighbouring settlements include Haslemere, Grayshott and Beacon Hill. Hindhead is the highest village in Surrey...
area and the A1 experienced disruption; many minor roads were closed and only the main motorway and A-road network were passable for much of 5, 6 and 7 January. In North East England
North East England
North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...
the A1(M) and A19 suffered challenging conditions (mainly in the evenings and at night) as a result of temperatures dropping to well below zero Celsius. Bus service between Newcastle and Sunderland experienced some disruption, as local operators suspended services.
Ireland
Local and minor roads were severely affected. Dublin AirportDublin Airport
Dublin Airport, , is operated by the Dublin Airport Authority. Located in Collinstown, in the Fingal part of County Dublin, 18.4 million passengers passed through the airport in 2010, making it the busiest airport in the Republic of Ireland, followed by Cork and Shannon...
closed on Wednesday, 6 January and again on Friday, 8 January. Cork Airport closed on Sunday, 10 January at 6:30 pm and did not reopen until 12:30 pm on Monday, 11 January. Dublin Bus
Dublin Bus
Dublin Bus is a public transport operator in Ireland. It operates an extensive bus network of 172 radial, cross-city and peripheral routes and 18 night routes in the city of Dublin and the Greater Dublin Area. The company, established in 1987, is a subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann which is...
temporarily cancelled all services, and Knock Airport also closed.
All schools were ordered to close for a day on Monday 11 January, due to the snow. Dublin's tram service Luas
Luas
Luas , also promoted in the development stage as the Dublin Light Rail System, is a tram or light rail system serving Dublin, the first such system in the decades since the closure of the last of the Dublin tramways. In 2007, the system carried 28.4 million passengers, a growth of 10% since...
was badly affected; most drivers and bus riders were afraid to travel on the ice-covered roads.
Finland
Long-distance railway traffic to and from HelsinkiHelsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
halted between 19 and 22 February. Cold weather, blizzards and drifting snow blocked 300 rail switches at the Ilmala rail yard, making traffic impossible. More than half the long-distance trains were cancelled, leaving hundreds of Lapland-bound winter holiday travellers stranded at Helsinki Central Railway station. Trains which were not cancelled ran several hours late. The amount of snow cleared
Snow removal
Snow removal is the job of removing snow after a snowfall to make travel easier and safer. This is done by both individual households and by governments and institutions.-De-icing and anti-icing:...
from Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
streets and transferred to snow collection sites was 210,000 truckloads.
Norway and Sweden
Rail transport in Norway and Sweden experienced serious setbacks throughout this Winter.Spain
Heavy snowfall in the CataloniaCatalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
region during March 2010 led to cancellation of Ryanair
Ryanair
Ryanair is an Irish low-cost airline. Its head office is at Dublin Airport and its primary operational bases at Dublin Airport and London Stansted Airport....
flights to and from Girona Airport on 9 March.
Economic impact
Winter vegetable crops such as cauliflowerCauliflower
Cauliflower is one of several vegetables in the species Brassica oleracea, in the family Brassicaceae. It is an annual plant that reproduces by seed...
and potatoes were threatened by the icy temperatures, and harvesting of carrot
Carrot
The carrot is a root vegetable, usually orange in colour, though purple, red, white, and yellow varieties exist. It has a crisp texture when fresh...
s, turnip
Turnip
The turnip or white turnip is a root vegetable commonly grown in temperate climates worldwide for its white, bulbous taproot. Small, tender varieties are grown for human consumption, while larger varieties are grown as feed for livestock...
s, sugar beet
Sugar beet
Sugar beet, a cultivated plant of Beta vulgaris, is a plant whose tuber contains a high concentration of sucrose. It is grown commercially for sugar production. Sugar beets and other B...
and parsnip
Parsnip
The parsnip is a root vegetable related to the carrot. Parsnips resemble carrots, but are paler than most carrots and have a sweeter taste, especially when cooked. The buttery, slightly spicy, sweet flavor of cooked mature parsnips is reminiscent of butterscotch, honey, and subtle cardamom...
s was delayed since the fields are frozen. The harsh winter was estimated to cost the economy of the United Kingdom
Economy of the United Kingdom
The economy of the United Kingdom is the sixth-largest national economy in the world measured by nominal GDP and seventh-largest measured by purchasing power parity , and the third-largest in Europe measured by nominal GDP and second-largest measured by PPP...
£700 million. A new British record for natural gas
Natural gas
Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...
consumption reached 454000000 cubic metres (16,032,858,460.5 cu ft) on 7 January, according to the National Grid. Approximately 12,000 schools were closed across the United Kingdom. A drop in about 30% of UK retail sales was estimated, with uneven consequences; pubs, out-of-town shopping centres and department stores were worst affected. Local-store sales and the sale of sledges, cat litter and contraceptives increased. The Scottish Highlands
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
saw a boost to tourism and winter sports. The Cairngorms
Cairngorms
The Cairngorms are a mountain range in the eastern Highlands of Scotland closely associated with the mountain of the same name - Cairn Gorm.-Name:...
, near Aviemore
Aviemore
Aviemore is a town and tourist resort, situated within the Cairngorms National Park in the Highlands of Scotland. It is in the Badenoch and Strathspey committee area, within the Highland council area. The town is popular for skiing and other winter sports, and for hill-walking in the Cairngorm...
, received its best business since the 1970s as thousands of tourists visited the area.
Sporting events cancelled
The snowfall in January postponed football games in the English Football LeagueThe Football League
The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...
, Premier League, Football League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
and the FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
. There were further postponements in Scotland (with 15 football matches postponed on 2 January), and in Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
, Serie B
Serie B
Serie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...
, Lega Pro Prima Divisione, Lega Pro Seconda Divisione and Serie D
Serie D
Serie D is the top level of the Italian non-professional football association called Lega Nazionale Dilettanti. The association represents over a million football players and thousands of football teams across Italy. Serie D ranks just below Lega Pro Seconda Divisione , and is thus considered the...
Italian football matches. Football in Northern Ireland was also affected. In rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
, there were cancellations in the English Premiership, Celtic League, the All-Ireland League, the Top 14, a Heineken Cup fixture in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
scheduled for 19 December, and a Heineken Cup fixture in Newport
Newport
Newport is a city and unitary authority area in Wales. Standing on the banks of the River Usk, it is located about east of Cardiff and is the largest urban area within the historic county boundaries of Monmouthshire and the preserved county of Gwent...
. Other affected sports included Gaelic football
Gaelic football
Gaelic football , commonly referred to as "football" or "Gaelic", or "Gah" is a form of football played mainly in Ireland...
's O'Byrne Cup
O'Byrne Cup
The O'Byrne Cup is a Gaelic football competition organised by the Leinster GAA. The competition is named after Matt O'Byrne, a former Wicklow GAA club officer. Participants include the twelve county teams and four colleges. The O'Byrne Cup 2011 champions are Kildare, who beat Louth in the final by...
, Dr. McKenna Cup, McGrath Cup
McGrath Cup
The McGrath Cup is a Gaelic Football competition played between the Third Level Colleges and Counties in Munster.The following Third Level Colleges take part:* University College Cork * Tralee IT* University of Limerick...
and FBD League games. The field hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
Irish Junior Cup
Irish Junior Cup (Men's Hockey)
The Irish Junior Cup is a knockout trophy played for field hockey clubs in Ireland. Entry is open to sides that do not qualify for the Irish Senior Cup and to the second teams of clubs that play in the Irish Senior Cup...
also saw postponements.
See also
- March 2010 North American winter stormMarch 2010 North American winter stormThe March 2010 North American winter storm was a powerful nor easter that impacted the Northeastern United States and Eastern Canada from March 12–16, 2010, resulting in at least nine deaths. The slow-moving storm produced over of rain in New England, causing widespread flooding of urban and...
- 2010 Northern Hemisphere summer heat wave
- 2009 North American blizzard
- Arctic dipole anomalyArctic dipole anomalyThe Arctic dipole anomaly is a pressure pattern characterized by high pressure on the arctic regions of North America, and a low pressure on the Eurasia region. This pattern sometimes replaces the Arctic oscillation and the North Atlantic Oscillation. It was observed for the first time in the...
- Climate of EuropeClimate of EuropeThe climate of Europe is of a temperate, continental nature, with a maritime climate prevailing on the western coasts and a mediterranean climate in the south. The climate is strongly conditioned by the Gulf Stream, which warms the western region to levels unattainable at similar latitudes on...
- Global storm activity of 2009Global storm activity of 2009Global storm activity of 2009 profiles the major worldwide storms, including blizzards, ice storms, and other winter events, from January 1, 2009 to December 31, 2009...
- Global storm activity of 2010Global storm activity of 2010The former article was split into three to avoid confusion between the three periods of storm activity.*Global storm activity of early 2010 – January–April 2010*Global storm activity of mid 2010 – May–September 2010...
- North Atlantic driftNorth Atlantic DriftNorth Atlantic Drift is:* An ocean current that continues from the North Atlantic Current* An album by Ocean Colour Scene: North Atlantic Drift this doesn't make any goddamn sense....
- Polar vortexPolar vortexA polar vortex is a persistent, large-scale cyclone located near one or both of a planet's geographical poles. On Earth, the polar vortices are located in the middle and upper troposphere and the stratosphere...
- Siberian HighSiberian HighThe Siberian High is a massive collection of cold or very cold dry air that accumulates on the Eurasian terrain for much of the year. It reaches its greatest size and strength in the winter, when the air temperature near the center of the high-pressure cell or anticyclone is often lower than...
- February 2009 Great Britain and Ireland snowfallFebruary 2009 Great Britain and Ireland snowfallThe snowfall across the British Isles in February 2009 was a prolonged period of snowfall that began on 1 February 2009. Some areas experienced their largest snowfall levels in 18 years. Snow fell over much of Western Europe. The United Kingdom's Met Office and Ireland's Met Éireann issued severe...
- Winter of 1990–1991 in Western EuropeWinter of 1990–1991 in Western EuropeThe winter of 1990–1991 was a particularly cold winter in Western Europe, noted especially for its effect on the United Kingdom, and for two significantly heavy falls of snow which occurred in December 1990 and February 1991. Sandwiched in between was a period of high winds and heavy rain which...
- Winter of 2010-2011 in Europe