An ice cold snap is set to hit parts of the UK overnight just as a major incident in Sheffield leaves hundreds without gas or hot water.
The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for ice across Northern Ireland, Wales, western and southwestern England from 5.00pm on Wednesday and going into Thursday evening.
Forecasters say Arctic air will start to move in, with the UK Health and Security Agency issuing a cold weather alert recommending people warm their homes to at least 18C (64.4F).
In a tweet, the Met Office said to get ice scrapers at the ready and dig out the winter hats, gloves and scarves if individuals haven’t already.
Forecaster Oli Claydon said: “Day to day we are in cold conditions already with that north-easterly flow, but conditions are set to get colder through the week, with the worst showers across northern Scotland but also bringing much colder conditions across all the UK.
“Overnight lows of -10 to -11C (12.2F) in areas where we do get snow in those rural parts of Scotland, with temperatures down to minus six (21.2F) in rural England.
“Cold conditions are set to remain through the weekend. Signs of warmer weather moving in from the southwest from Tuesday next week.
“But the signs are that the cold weather will hold in the north of the UK, so there will be a split between north and south.”
Individuals are being warned to expect travel disruption and a risk of slippery surfaces due to snow showers and ice.
5-day weather forecast for where you live
In London, the Severe Weather Emergency Protocol (SWEP) has been activated for the first time this winter to provide emergency accommodation for homeless people.
With parts of London expected to drop as low as -3, mayor Sadiq Khan warned that too many individuals are sleeping on the streets without safe accommodation.
The Mayor’s “In for Good” principle means no-one will be asked to leave accommodation until a support plan is in place to end their rough sleeping, regardless of an increase in temperature. All boroughs have committed to the principle.
Homes left without heating ‘handed out electrical heaters’ as major incident continues
The Met Office’s weather warning comes on the same day Sheffield City Council declared a major incident over the “unprecedented” gas flood, where a burst water main tore holes in gas pipes. The incident left 2,000 properties in the area of Stannington without heating or hot water on 2 December.
Gas company Cadent said, during an update on Wednesday 7 December, that over 100 engineers are “working hard around the clock” to get gas back on for residents.
The update posted to their incident page read: “We want to thank everyone for being available for our engineers to come into your properties in zone 2 yesterday to help to restore your gas supplies.
“Overnight our engineers have made positive progress to restore more gas supplies in zone 2 and this work is ongoing today and in zone 1. Last night we also managed to pump out another 16,000 litres of water from zone 5.”
On Tuesday, a further 200,000 litres of water had been removed as they continued to try and get residents gas back on.
Residents are being warned not to turn the gas on themselves, with Cadent handing out electrical heaters and hobs to residents in need, according to BBC Sheffield.
Yorkshire Water tweeted on Wednesday that the burst water main is now fixed, but gas issues remain ongoing.
ITV News reported that a spokesperson said: “We apologise for the impact our burst water main in Stannington has had and understand how difficult it has been for those affected. We’re continuing to work closely with Cadent to provide additional support in the area.”
Labour MP Olivia Blake said that her “heart goes out to all those affected” in her constituency.
Dr Raquel Nunes, Assistant Professor in Environmental Change and Public Health at Warwick Medical School warned about the impact that incoming spouts of extreme cold weather can have on human health and said there’s an “increased probability” of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, falls and injuries, as well as hypothermia with older people, those chronically ill, children and homeless.
