Shropshire communities rally together as military helps keep NHS running
Soldiers were deployed to help keep the NHS running today as communities rallied around to help those in need.
For some the day has been a fun snow day, but for many living in rural villages and hamlets it has meant relying on the help of neighbours with 4x4s to get them out and about.
Farmers across the county have been busy using their tractors to clear snow from lanes and roads, while council gritters and snow ploughs were busy throughout the night and the military have been helping transport NHS staff to work.
Armed forces were put on standby at 11pm last night and Shropshire-based troops have been helping ferry medics and nurses into work from rural areas throughout the day.
Staff at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital (RSH) and the Princess Royal and Telford have also had help from Shrewsbury bar and restaurant Cromwells, who completed 16 journeys in their Range Rover by midday after offering the service on social media.
Other NHS staff braved the weather and walked to work, including 26-year-old staff nurse Daisy Ambrose, who trekked through the snow for an hour on her day off to help the team on Ward 26 at RSH and even helped push a stranded car off the car park.
Another member of RSH staff, who lives on the outskirts of Shrewsbury and has over a five-mile drive to get to a main road, ended up driving across fields in a 4x4 after following a snow plough proved unsuccessful.
Alex Harris from Harmer Hill, near Shrewsbury, also offered the use of his Land Rover to anyone working for the emergency services who needed a hand getting in to work for their shifts.
Meanwhile a couple in Ludlow paid for a homeless man to stay in a Travelodge and the Salvation Army in Oakengates, Telford, put on a hot pot lunch providing warmth to those in need.
Major Julie Rowley said that the centre was open to all those who needed to utilise the service as the cold weather continues.
Freezing for the animals
Sally Johnson, founder of the Harry Johnson Trust, and husband Stephen run a farm from their home at Vennington, near Shrewsbury.
She was forced out to the lambing shed when the wind and sub-zero temperatures were at their peak.
Mrs Johnson said: “Stephen is working all day and night to make sure the sheep and cows have water to drink and food to eat.
“The water pipes in the cattle sheds are freezing faster than we can defrost them. It's non-stop but the animals need our care.
"No snow day here – I was feeding lambs at 2am and the wind howling and whipping the snow in to drifts was incredible.”
Tris Pearce, from Pearce Enviroment LTD, just made his way through the lanes close to his house at Wilcott Marsh, Nesscliffe, near Shrewsbury.
His tractor struggled to forge a path through snowdrifts at Felton Butler and even the snow plough was defeated by the weather.
Drivers rally together
In the south of the county, motorists helped dig cars out of the drifts and in Ludlow, the Co-op remained open so people could buy basic supplies after staff were put up overnight in the local Travelodge.
At Tern Hill, in north Shropshire a lorry had become stuck on the A41 and drivers used their own vehicles to try and move it from the carriageway.
Meanwhile motorists helped to move vehicles which had become stranded at Dorrington on the outskirts of Shrewsbury.
Police were called to the A5 at Shottaton between Nesscliffe and Ruyton XI Towns after a lorry left the road and ended up in a hedge. Long tailbacks were reported and the road was closed for more than two hours. Diversions were in place through nearby villages.
A lorry jackknifed on the A49 south of Bayston Hill at around 7am and motorists were forced to turn back as the road was closed for some time.
Provision was also made for the homeless. The Ark in Shrewsbury opened up overnight and the Taj Mahal Indian Restaurant on Haygate Road in Wellington ensured there was somewhere to go for those who needed some warmth.
Taxis were still battling to get passengers around the county. The county's biggest taxi firm reported that availability was good.
Cindy Wilday, director at Go Carz, said that the severe weather posed a problem and the call centre had been extremely busy.
“Our staff really do pull together as a team to keep things moving and it's like a military operation to make sure we get peope to where they need to go,” she added.
