THE Met Office has issued a severe weather warning for Hampshire, but has lowered its risk threat for Southampton.
As the sub-zero temperatures that blighted Hampshire before Christmas make a return, local councils said they were more than ready for another cold snap.
Southampton had been predicted by the Met Office to be at risk of a worst case scenario of more than 40cm of snow (15.7").
However, that was later revised down to between 10 and 15cm more likely.
Hampshire as a whole however is still at risk of a maximum of 40cm.
The city was one of the worst-affected areas after a combination of rain and sub-zero temperatures left pavements and roads covered in black ice in the pre- Christmas freeze.
Last year's January snow
Residents across the region were unable to leave their homes as cars skidded off driveways while commuters were left in queues of traffic as the carriageways were littered with vehicles that had spun out of control.
• Send us your cold weather photos and video.
With more freezing weather on the way today, the council is reassuring residents that it is ready to deal with whatever the Arctic temperatures may bring – and say that they could have up to 100 staff gritting the city’s roads.
A Southampton City Council spokesman said: “We have hundreds of tonnes of rock salt stored ready for the next cold snap, and we have quick access to more if we need it.
View Snow Map for Hampshire in a larger map
“The council has five large gritting lorries and more than 35 smaller vehicles which we can use to grit the roads and pavements.
“In the worst conditions we would get more that 100 staff gritting the city.”
Hampshire County Council was unable to comment, instead referring the Daily Echo to a statement issued on December 22 stating that a “major countywide salting operation” had been launched.
• The Daily Echo website has a list of any school closures over the next few days as soon as individual headteachers make any announcement.
Tell us what the weather is like where you are or send us a picture and we'll publish it on our 'Snow in Hampshire Gallery' and also put you on the map. Send your snowy pics to picdesk@dailyecho.co.uk
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