Shropshire Star

Shropshire sees snow - just days after the clocks went forward

Parts of Shropshire had a brush with snow this morning after a cold snap overnight – and just days after we put the clocks forward for the start of summer time.

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Snow in Longnor. Photo: Peter Steggles.

Oswestry and Shrewsbury were both affected by snowfall as temperatures dropped below 0C, and nearby villages also saw snow and frost.

Oswestry's racecourse under snow. Photo: David Preston

Oswestry’s racecourse was covered today, and Cockshutt near Ellesmere also saw a dusting.

Several residents took to Twitter to post reports of that snow on high ground and wintry showers.

Sheep seeking shelter at Cockshutt, near Ellesmere

Ishbel Lapper tweeted: “Morning all. Snow on the hills this morning and wintry showers still in the #Shropshire air. Mind how you go whatever you are up to today. #HR #ShropshireBusiness”.

Artist Sarah Harding tweeted an image from the landscape near Clun: “#Snow in #Shropshire this morning.”

Delivery firm Premier Fleet Services Ltd tweeted: “Our drivers are reporting snow and hailstones failing in parts of Shropshire at the moment, take care on the roads.”

CeCe tweeted: “Yesterday afternoon (2nd April,) at 2pm. #snow in our village in North #Shropshire.”

The current rainy cold spell, due to affect much of the country for a number of days, is associated with a persistent area of low pressure in the North Sea.

The Met Office reported showers, hail and thunder as well as snow in areas across the UK. The wet and windy weather is due to continue tomorrow with temperatures remaining below 10C.

Watch the Met Office forecast here:

Exactly six years ago, a spell of severe winter weather brought significant snowfalls and unseasonably low temperatures to parts of the county.

From around March 10 to April 10, 2013 the UK experienced a prolonged spell of below average temperatures with winds from the east or north, drawing bitterly cold air from northern Europe and Siberia. Persistent cloud cover resulted in cold, overcast days with a strong easterly wind often contributing to significant wind chill. The cold was often accompanied by snowfalls.

At one stage blizzards battered Shropshire and mid Wales with up to four inches of snow falling in some areas bringing roads to a standstill, delaying major roadworks and caused large scale cancellations to community events across the region.

Council gritting lorries were out in force as temperatures barely rose above freezing and bringing strong winds in the days leading up to Easter.