LONDON — A significant cold wave swept across the United Kingdom on Tuesday, resulting in the closure of numerous schools and causing extensive disruptions in road and rail travel. The adverse weather conditions, characterized by snow, ice, and sleet, affected various regions of the country.
The Met Office, the UK’s weather authority, issued warnings regarding snow and ice accumulation, attributing the unusual frigid conditions to an Arctic maritime air mass drifting south from the northern parts of the UK. They have cautioned that power outages might occur, leading potentially to rural areas being isolated due to the harsh weather.
Reports indicated that nearly 200 schools decided to close their doors, according to multiple media outlets. In addition, countless commuters encountered challenges during their travel as numerous train services were either canceled or experienced delays due to snow covering the railway tracks.
The weather forecast predicted that many regions could see snowfall of up to 5 centimeters (approximately 2 inches), with even higher areas potentially receiving as much as 20 centimeters of snow.
In response to the chilly conditions, the UK Health Security Agency released its initial cold weather health alert for the season, warning that the severe conditions could pose risks, particularly to the elderly and other vulnerable individuals.
