 Satellite image of the snowfall in England and Wales (Click here for false colour image) | |
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1 February 2009 |
| Dissipated | 13 February 2009[1] |
| Winter storm | |
| Lowest pressure | 992 mbar (hPa)[2] |
| Lowest temperature | −18.4 °C (−1.1 °F) inAviemore, Scotland |
| Maximum snowfall or ice accretion | 55 cm (22 in) inOkehampton,Devon |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | At least 4 |
| Damage | £1.3 billion (US$2.1 billion)[2] |
| Areas affected | British Isles and parts ofWestern Europe |
A prolonged period ofsnowfall began in Great Britain and Ireland on 1 February 2009. Some areas experienced theirlargest snowfall levels in 18 years.[3] Snow fell over much of Western Europe.[4] TheUnited Kingdom'sMet Office andIreland'sMet Éireann issued severe weather warnings in anticipation of the snowfall. More than 30 centimetres (12 in) of snow fell on parts of theNorth Downs and over 20 cm (8 in) in parts of the London area.[5] Such snow accumulation is uncommon in London.[6] On the morning of 6 February the majority of Great Britain and Ireland had snow cover, with the area surrounding theBristol Channel (South Wales:Cardiff area; andSouth West England:Bristol area) being most affected: 55 cm (22 in) had settled overnight aroundOkehampton,Devon,South West England with similar depths in South Wales. In Ireland the highest totals were recorded around East Kildare andCounty Wicklow where up to 28 cm (11 in) fell aroundNaas,County Kildare and even more along theWicklow Mountains. The last time such widespread snowfall affected Britain was in February 1991.[7] On the 2nd a total of 32 cm (13 in) had fallen inLeatherhead,Surrey just south of theM25. Also 30 cm (12 in) had fallen over theSouth Downs and 26 cm (10 in) in higher areas ofBrighton.
On 2 February, allLondon Buses were removed from service and there were severe delays onLondon Underground. All train services onSoutheastern railway services between London,Kent andEast Sussex were cancelled, as were those onSouthern.South West Trains operated an emergency timetable with reduced service. Severe disruption occurred onFirst Capital Connect services,c2c services,First Great Western services,National Express East Anglia andEurostar services fromSt Pancras International. In IrelandDublin Bus routes were also severely disrupted while in England all bus services inBrighton,Crawley andRoyal Tunbridge Wells had been severely disrupted.
Heathrow Airport was closed andBritish Airways cancelled all departures for a period.London City,Luton,Aberdeen,Bristol,Cardiff,Birmingham andSouthampton were also affected.[6][8] TheGatwick Express railway service was suspended.[3] In Ireland on 5 FebruaryDublin Airport was closed for a period to allow snow to be cleared from the runways, delaying flights. Flights at the airport were cancelled the following day.
Other effects included lost work time and disruption to education. Costs, mainly in terms of lost work time, are estimated to amount to around £1.2 billion, although this may be underestimated.[citation needed] The adverse weather conditions caused schools in some areas of the United Kingdom to close during 2, 3 and 5 February in theMidlands.[9]
Awinter storm swept across the south of England on 9–10 February bringing heavy rain and snow, which caused flooding in southern England. InFrance,Paris'sCharles de Gaulle Airport was closed. InAviemore, in theScottish Highlands, a temperature of −18.4 °C (−1.1 °F) — according to the Met Office, was recorded; the lowest temperature recorded in the UK since 2003.[10][11]
The maximum depth of the event was 55 cm (22 in) inOkehampton,Devon on 6 February. Other high amounts wereDrybrook,Gloucestershire which had on 2 February 32 cm (13 in) reported inLeatherhead, 28 cm (11 in) inPurley, 25 cm (10 in) inCroydon, 20 cm (8 in) in Greater London, 30 cm (12 in) on theSouth Downs, 18 cm (7 in) in Brighton and 26 cm (10 in) on higher areas of Brighton.
The weather conditions severely disrupted the month's sporting schedule.[12]
The February 2009 snowstorm followed an intenseSudden stratospheric warming in the previous month. These events often help to set up surface weather patterns that give rise to cold spells and snowfall in Europe.[13] The snow then resulted from several factors starting on 1 February, the main component of which was a stronglow pressure area nearSpain. A stronghigh pressure area overScandinavia created a tightpressure gradient between the two systems. Acold front also was tracking overBritain at this time. After passing through the region, cold air set in behind it, enhanced by an upper-level low overGermany. An invertedtrough then extended out from the cold front, bringing precipitation to England. Late on 2 February, a surface-low pressure system, the actual snow storm, developed over theEnglish Channel.[2]
The school closures in the United Kingdom prompted negative comments from parents who were unhappy about the "confusing and contradictory" messages they received.[20] Some laid the blame of the excessive closures:not on the public's actual ability to make alternative travel arrangements - to 'cope', but on council and school administrators' having an unhelpful risk-averse 'health and safety driven' legal attitude.[21] Other concerns included parents having to take time off work when the weather was not quite as bad as it seemed.[22][23]
Swansea University was closed on Tuesday 3 February through concern of the safety of students and staff using icy roads. TheUniversity of Exeter was closed from 15:00 on Friday 6 February because of icy conditions on its hilly campus, while theUniversity of the West of England inBristol and neighbouring institutions theUniversity of Bath andBath Spa University were closed on Thursday 5th and Friday 6th for similar reasons.[1][2][3].
On 9 February, heavy rain and melting snow caused flooding in southern England, exacerbated by high tides which trapped water in river systems. Heavy snow and floods closed roads inCornwall,Devon,Oxfordshire,Somerset,Hampshire and Sussex. Areas ofGloucestershire,Herefordshire andWorcestershire endured power cuts because of damage caused by the weight of snow on equipment or trees falling onto power lines. In Somerset, 20 people were rescued from their cars inTaunton andYeovil because of floods, and rivers burst their banks.[24]
Transport links in many parts of the regions were greatly affected by the bad weather. Railway services were reduced in frequency, with the south-east of England most affected, but were reintroduced over the following two days.South West Trains's services to and fromWaterloo were disrupted, as wereSoutheastern andSouthern trains services fromKent and theSouth Coast. By 3 February, only theDistrict line saw route delays through London.
Many rural and urban bus services in Britain and Ireland were suspended.Transport for London reported that several bus routes had been "suspended or redirected" due to blocked roads. All buses were cancelled on 2 February after 20 buses slid off the road the previous day.[25] London did not have enough snowploughs to cope with the widespread problems.[26]
In IrelandDublin Bus experienced delays on 3 February, particularly in the southside of the city, aroundLucan,Tallaght,Rathfarnham andEnniskerry. No buses were able to gain access to Lucan village or estates in Tallaght.[27] Dublin's M50 experienced severe delays throughout with many commuters reporting lengthy periods until they reached their homes following work.[27]
In other areas buses generally took amended routes, avoiding side roads or rural lanes and using only main roads.
In England and Wales bothSevern crossings were closed on 6 February because ice began falling from overhead gantries, affecting both theM4 andM48 motorways across theSevern Estuary; traffic was diverted intoGloucestershire and onto the M50. This was the first closure because of a weather-related incident of the second Severn crossing since the structure opened in 1996.[28] They reopened on 10 February.[24]
TheA23 betweenBrighton andHaywards Heath saw severe disruption on 2 February and theA27 through Brighton was closed because of the huge volume of snowfall.
"I have to admit that it's an irony to return home to snow but I've come to like it."
Heathrow Airport closed both of its runways; one was later reopened.British Airways cancelled all departures.London City,Luton andSouthampton Airports were closed.[6][8] TheGatwick Express railway service was suspended.[3] Temporary closures also affected other international airports atCardiff,[30]Birmingham[31] andBristol.[32]
On 5 February heavy snowfalls closedDublin Airport in Ireland, leading to the cancellation of approximately half the flight operation or almost 200 flights.[33] The airport closed at 01:00, blaming slippery runways, and flights were diverted to other airports.[34] It reopened at 19:45 that evening[33] but flights were disrupted by the weather again the following day.[35]
The icy conditions led to many casualties on roads and exposed areas. Hospitals across the region reported great increases in injuries sustained from falling in the snow as large numbers of people came outside to partake in the winter weather. Sites across south-central England, coveringBerkshire,Buckinghamshire,Oxfordshire,Hampshire and theIsle of Wight, reported that their emergency departments were very busy with minor injuries, with figures of more than one-quarter of all patients suffering falls.
News coverage of the snow received very high ratings, with over 7 million watching theBBC's18:00 and22:00 news programmes. TheBBC News channel received its biggest audience since the2007 London car bombs, and their website was sent 35,000 pictures and videos from people of the snow, their highest number ever.[43]
The region's sporting schedule for the early and latter parts of the week was severely affected by the extreme weather conditions. Sports such ashurling,camogie,gaelic football,association football,rugby union,rugby league,horse racing,motorsports andfox hunting were all disrupted in various ways summarised below.
In some regions of Britain, the response to the adverse weather conditions was considered an unnecessary panic[49] – theDevon andCornwall Business Council stated:"We have had too many businesses closed unnecessarily because people were panicked by the weather forecast. (...) We have had too many schools closed down, which has an adverse impact on people who rely on carers to look after children. (...) I think we have over-reacted quite significantly."[49] It has been estimated that the weather cost the region's small businesses £40m.
In the wake of London's bus service closures, an inquiry was held into the inability of London's local authorities to work with public transport service providers.[50]
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