The winter of 1962/63 was tobogganing heaven for the nation's children
but the cold and snow would offer a challenge of a different kind
for just about everyone else. Glasgow had its first white Christmas
since 1938 when rain turned to snow as it moved south, and a belt
of snow became almost stationary over southern England on Boxing
Day. The following day five centimetres of snow lay in the Channel
Islands, with 30 cm covering much of southern England. The initial
effect of this snowfall was to bring transport to a standstill,
delay schools opening and force the cancellation of sporting events
- but more snow was on the way.
On 29 and 30 December a blizzard across south-west England and
Wales left drifts six metres deep which blocked roads and rail
routes, left villages cut off and brought down power lines.Thanks
to further falls and almost continual near-freezing temperatures,
snow was still deep on the ground across much of the country three
months later.
In the intervals when snow was not falling, the country simply
appeared to freeze solid - January daytime temperatures barely
crept above freezing, and night frosts produced a temperature
of -16 °C in places as far apart as Gatwick and Eskdalemuir.
Freezing fog was a frequent hazard - but the spectacular rime
deposits that built up over successive days were a photographer's
dream.
January was the month when even the sea froze (out to half a
mile from the shore at Herne Bay), the Thames froze right across
in places, and ice floes appeared on the river at Tower Bridge.
Everywhere birds literally dropped off their perches - killed
by the cold and lack of natural food.
February was marked by more snow arriving on south-easterly winds
during the first week, with a 36-hour blizzard hitting western
parts of the country. Drifts 20 feet deep formed in gale-force
winds (gusts in excess of 70 knots were common, and a gust of
103 knots was recorded on the Isle of Man). Many rural communities
found themselves cut off for the tenth time since Christmas. Throughout
the winter thousands of sheep, cattle and ponies starved because
it was impossible to get enough fodder to them.
A slight lull in the wintry proceedings happened around mid-month,
but in the third week of February it was the turn of the north-west
UK to suffer - in Cumberland the snowfall was reckoned to be the
worst in living memory. By the end of the month the weather over
the country had reverted to 'normal' - cold but clear and sunny
days with severe night frosts and freezing fog.
A gradual thaw then set in - the morning of 6 March 1963 was
the first day in the year that the entire country was frost free,
and the temperature soared to 17 °C in London. Temperatures
recovered, and long icicles playfully speared into snowdrifts
by children in January, finally started to shrink. Monster snowmen
and snowballs - now adrift and melting in the green 'seas' of
gardens and playing fields - were soon all that was left of the
winter that was probably the coldest since 1795.
More
from Education about the winters of 1947 and 1963
|
