Drivers warned to brace for snowfall in Hampshire and Southampton

9:16am Thursday 17th January 2013 in In Depth Photograph of the Author By Luke Tugby, Senior reporter

Drivers warned to brace for snowfall Drivers warned to brace for snowfall

LIGHT snow flurries have begun in parts of Hampshire - but severe weather warnings remain in place across the county for tomorrow as residents prepare to bear the brunt of the Siberian blast.

A freezing blizzard is expected to sweep the county tomorrow as temperatures plummet to –5C (23F) with motorists being told only to make journeys where necessary.

Met Office experts say Hampshire will be hit by a barrage of snow, sleet and gale force winds throughout the day, with some parts of the county likely to be blanketed in up to 6in (15cm) of the white stuff.

Although Southampton is expected to avoid the worst of the snowfall, the city could still be coated in around 2in (5cm) of snow by the afternoon.

Forecasters and motoring groups have urged drivers to take extra care on the roads and to make routine checks on their vehicles before making journeys.

The warning comes after the Daily Echo launched its Stay Warm campaign, encouraging people across the county to look out for elderly friends, relatives and neighbours during the winter blast.

As previously reported, Hampshire’s civic chiefs have moved to assure residents that they have “robust procedures” in place to deal with snowfall and keep our roads moving.

But the AA has issued a warning to drivers to take extra care as the cold snap takes an icy grip on the county.

Last night the AA revealed that they attended around 9,000 breakdowns across the UK yesterday morning alone, as thousands of cars failed to get off their driveways.

And they expected the number of call-outs to reach 17,000 by the end of the day – up from around 9,500 on an average Wednesday.

It meant that breakdown teams were dealing with almost 2,000 call-outs every hour during peak times.

Darron Burness, the AA’s head of special operations, said: “Winter’s really starting to bite now with widespread freezing conditions and the prospect of more snow at the end of the week.

“We’re likely to see some pretty horrible driving conditions on Friday with drifting snow and potentially blizzard-like conditions across higher level routes in particular. Check the Met Office weather alerts and traffic reports before departing and allow a bit more time for your journey, as you don’t want to rush on potentially icy roads.”

Comments(22)

ToastyTea says...
9:45am Thu 17 Jan 13

I really hope it snows for the weekend, whenever we get snow it seems to be during the week when I'm at work and can't enjoy it :/

Report this post »

sburman says...
10:07am Thu 17 Jan 13

Talk about over dramatic, I'm not preparing to face the brunt of anything.
It’s mid –winter for goodness sake what weather are we expecting

Report this post »

WECOMING4U says...
10:09am Thu 17 Jan 13

Over reaction as normal, its when they don't warn you , it is time to worry!

Report this post »

Sovietobserver says...
10:29am Thu 17 Jan 13

Tesco and B 'n Q would like to thank the Daily Echo for all the extra sales in salt and shovels that this report is generating.

Report this post »

my love says...
10:59am Thu 17 Jan 13

It's started......we have light snow at the moment I'm near fareham.....watch the uk come to a stand still yet again!!

Report this post »

business-guru says...
11:19am Thu 17 Jan 13

its not a "siberian blast". its an occluded front from the west hitting cold air sitting over the East of the UK. Siberia has absolutely nothing to do with it.

Report this post »

Hdg end mo says...
11:49am Thu 17 Jan 13

No problem for my range rover

Report this post »

nedscrumpo says...
12:33pm Thu 17 Jan 13

No doubt the usual idiots will be out in force driving carelessly causing more delays then there need to be.

Report this post »

boobooj says...
1:30pm Thu 17 Jan 13

Hdg end mo wrote:
No problem for my range rover
Now you just need an excuse for using a gas guzzling 4x4 on the other 364 days of the year!

Report this post »

pushamara says...
1:51pm Thu 17 Jan 13

Hdg end mo wrote:
No problem for my range rover
You better get the manual out quick and work out how to put it into four wheel drive. You know what i mean, the reason it was built! Oh that's right, you don't need it on the school run

Report this post »

business-guru says...
2:38pm Thu 17 Jan 13

pushamara wrote:
Hdg end mo wrote:
No problem for my range rover
You better get the manual out quick and work out how to put it into four wheel drive. You know what i mean, the reason it was built! Oh that's right, you don't need it on the school run
modern range rovers were build for the school run in posh areas.... no serious off-roader would buy one, toyota landcruiser or hi-lux, now thats another story...

Report this post »

westender15 says...
2:57pm Thu 17 Jan 13

pushamara wrote:
Hdg end mo wrote: No problem for my range rover
You better get the manual out quick and work out how to put it into four wheel drive. You know what i mean, the reason it was built! Oh that's right, you don't need it on the school run
pushamara, all Range Rovers and Land Rovers are in permanent 4 wheel drive. Not like the cheap Toyota's mentioned by buisiness-guru!!

Report this post »

bernard7 says...
3:24pm Thu 17 Jan 13

Jesus christ here comes the 4x4 police. I find that on the other 364 days of the year mine comes in quite handy as down narrow roads it makes people in smaller cars get out of my way.

Report this post »

thesotonsaint says...
3:44pm Thu 17 Jan 13

bernard7 wrote:
Jesus christ here comes the 4x4 police. I find that on the other 364 days of the year mine comes in quite handy as down narrow roads it makes people in smaller cars get out of my way.
Here here, and since I pay such a great amount in road tax and fule duty on mine, I will enjoy it for the other 364 days a year!

Report this post »

miltonarcher says...
3:48pm Thu 17 Jan 13

You should see the parade of huge 4x4 here in Winchester delivering kids to the private school. They are all driven by women who dont have a clue how to drive or park them. If only they realised how stupid they look in these fashion statements. Get something more appropriate for pities sake.

Report this post »

bernard7 says...
3:50pm Thu 17 Jan 13

Exactly, i always used to have much smaller cars but since getting my mighty 4x4 i shall never go back. It's far safer and if i do ever have to cross a ford or climb a mountain i know i can.

For example i bet most of you wear a watch that is waterproof to 100 metres, now are you ever going to swim that deep? probably not! but its nice to know that you can if you want to. I like to know that i could drive across the sahara desert if i wanted to but i probably never will.

Report this post »

bernard7 says...
3:54pm Thu 17 Jan 13

@miltonmarcher

Well if those ladies' can afford to why the chuff not and also if it does snow i bet their children will be the only ones attending school that day! Even though their teachers probably wont be there because they drive much smaller inferior automobiles.

Report this post »

Hdg end mo says...
5:34pm Thu 17 Jan 13

westender15 wrote:
pushamara wrote:
Hdg end mo wrote: No problem for my range rover
You better get the manual out quick and work out how to put it into four wheel drive. You know what i mean, the reason it was built! Oh that's right, you don't need it on the school run
pushamara, all Range Rovers and Land Rovers are in permanent 4 wheel drive. Not like the cheap Toyota's mentioned by buisiness-guru!!
Its actually the wifes range brand spanker 2013 model cost me a bleedin fortune
Living in hedge end surely thats rural and yes must compete with the neighbours cayanne

Report this post »

Hdg end mo says...
5:38pm Thu 17 Jan 13

And yes only used for school runs and m&s trips

Report this post »

lorra1 says...
6:07pm Thu 17 Jan 13

pulling horse boxes ,trailors a caravan all for my pleasure is what i use my landcruiser for not a statement and a bmw for school run and m&s trips

Report this post »

Hdg end mo says...
6:11pm Thu 17 Jan 13

lorra1 wrote:
pulling horse boxes ,trailors a caravan all for my pleasure is what i use my landcruiser for not a statement and a bmw for school run and m&s trips
Typical women fleecing the fella again
:-)

Report this post »

dango says...
9:40am Fri 18 Jan 13

Range Rover!! Bet you have summer tyres on it, don't you? I'll take my front wheel drive Fabia with winters on it over your Range Rover with summers any day.

Report this post »

click2find

About cookies

We want you to enjoy your visit to our website. That's why we use cookies to enhance your experience. By staying on our website you agree to our use of cookies. Find out more about the cookies we use.

I agree