Winter’s back and so is the wintry weather. A flurry of snow is expected this weekend in the United Kingdom and eastern Europe as well as snowfall in parts of Scotland that is bringing renewed misery to power companies.
The weather forecasters from Public and Commercial Services Agency, which serves as an energy regulator in the UK, said that as of Aug. 31 electricity supplier Centrica had 3,700 customers without power as a result of heavy snow.
“This is a stark reminder that winter is just around the corner and we need to take extreme care over the next few weeks as we prepare for winter,” Mark Flanagan, the director of energy market operations at the regulator, said in a statement.
Another 2,200 customers had lost power as a result of snowfall in northern Scotland, another 500 were without power in Wales and another 550 were cut off in Lincolnshire.
More than 32,000 homes also lost power overnight Thursday after falling through the ice created when the ground was frozen in Northern Ireland. Some 32,000 homes also lost power overnight Thursday after falling through the ice created when the ground was frozen in Northern Ireland.
Homeowners in Northern Ireland were again advised not to drive in rural areas if there is not clear visibility with snow and ice.
In the first round of winter in November last year, northern England saw snow in the same areas.
The Met Office forecasts up to 7 centimeters of snow in areas around Northern Ireland and Scotland from Friday evening until Saturday afternoon. It will then rain will move in over the northwest.
“More showers are expected to fall for a time over parts of Wales and southwest England bringing further sleet and snow,” The Met Office said on Friday.
“The heaviest will continue to occur over east central parts of Wales and southwest England with up to 10 cm or more in places. The Midlands, northern England and Wales will continue to see quite heavy, persistent showers through the day,” it said.
The wintry weather conditions come as another group of “Beast from the East” polar winds will sweep down from Siberia. A huge pressure system will carry freezing temperatures as far east as the Arctic Circle, threatening bitter Arctic conditions for the next couple of weeks.
The “Beast from the East” or “Banna Beast” has been pushing northeast across the UK and Europe for several weeks now. Temperatures are currently on average well below the expected average of 12 degrees Celsius.