Amber cold health alert extended for Yorkshire as temperatures hit -10C
An amber cold health alert for Yorkshire due caused by freezing temperatures across the county has been extended into the weekend.
It comes after temperatures plunged to as low as -10C in Topcliffe, North Yorkshire, overnight.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued amber cold health alerts for England - including in Yorkshire - as an early warning that adverse temperatures are likely to affect health and wellbeing.
The alert was originally in place until Friday, but it has now been extended until 12pm on Sunday (Jan 11).
A yellow weather warning for ice which covers Yorkshire has also been issued for Wednesday (Jan 6) by the Met Office.
The Met Office said northern and central areas of England could face more snow, with rain and strong winds, depending on the path of an approaching Atlantic low-pressure system.
The Met Office added parts of the south of England may see some snow on higher ground on Thursday and Friday.
Forecaster Aidan McGivern said in a video posted on the Met Office’s X account that there is a 20 per cent chance the system takes a northern route, which would bring widespread “disruptive” wind and rain to much of England and Wales, and possibly more snow in northern England, southern Scotland and Northern Ireland.
But he said there was a 30% chance that the front moves through northern France, bringing disruptive snow to southern counties in England, especially in higher areas.
The most likely outcome is wind and rain in southern parts of the UK, with central England seeing the risk of disruption from snow, he added.
Rain turning to snow will hit Scotland and northern England on Tuesday, with 1–5 cm likely in northern England and up to 10–15 cm in central and eastern Scotland, the Met Office said.
What the UKHSA alert means
Forecast weather is likely to cause significant impacts across health and social care services, including:
- a rise in deaths, particularly among those aged 65 and over or with health conditions. We may also see impacts on younger age groups
- a likely increase in demand for health services
- temperatures inside places like hospitals, care homes, and clinics dropping below the levels recommended for assessing health risks
- challenges keeping indoor temperatures at the recommended 18°C leading to more risk to vulnerable people
- staffing issues due to external factors (such as travel delays)
- other sectors starting to observe impacts (such as transport and energy)