It's that time of year again and the BBC are forecasting the coming of the second ice age and Aberdeen/Dyce was closed earlier this morning but has now re-opened . It's snowing quite heavily up here and with poor visibility so I suspect that Teesside may be closed before too long ?
Landed at Newcastle but Teesside must be closed as the Cobham Falcons which went out at 10:00 have not come back yet and must have diverted elsewhere ?
Last night on the local news Bristol was proudly showing off its new super snow clearing plant. The airport was closed this morning and still is (14.45). Wrong kind of snow I guess!
Plan A is always more effective when the problem you are working on understands that Plan B will involve the use of dynamite
BBC2 showed an excellent film on the 1963 freeze up last night, it was part of Winterwatch to show the effect on the wildlife but I think most watched for this 1963 film. Many roads were closed for long periods but the striking thing was that mostly traffic kept running in conditions far worse than the inch or snow shown bring parts of Britain to a standstill. Also schools only closed because there toilets had frozen up, otherwise children just walked to school through the snow.
Worth watching on iPlayer - it apparently got a much bigger audience than BBC1!
My offering as to some reasons why we 'just kept on going' in 1963 could be -
Steam engines are much heavier than diesel engines, thus had more purchase on the rails.
There was much less motor traffic on the roads and most vehicles had narrow crossply tyres which would bite into the snow better than wide raidials which 'float' on such surfaces.
Schools had a very local catchment area, thus pupils could easily walk to school rather than be taixed in by parents from miles away.
Folk didn't even consider compensation/liability if they slipped/fell in the snow or ice.
We use cookies to improve our website and your experience when using it. Cookies used for the essential operation of this site have already been set. By continuing to use this site you are agreeing to this. To find out more about the cookies we use and how to delete them, see our privacy policy.
