Ice and easy does it!

Reporter: BEATRIZ AYALA
Date online: 18 December 2009

Drivers find the weather snow going

RUSH-HOUR commuters faced a treacherous journey to work through snow and ice this morning.

Drivers faced icy roads and up to an inch of snow on some side roads, with more on Saddleworth’s hills.

The cold snap saw temperatures tumble to -3C overnight, and forecasters are warning the mercury could sink to -6C tonight.

Chronicle weatherman Damian Rodgers said temperatures would not get above freezing today and warned there could be further flurries of snow over the weekend.

Eight gritting teams battled overnight to keep the borough’s roads clear, following on from the seven vehicles which pre-gritted the roads from 2pm yesterday.

Snow ploughs were fitted to the front of three machines to tackle high roads in Saddleworth from 6pm.

Four more gritters will be tackling all the secondary routes around the borough and the lanes in Saddleworth, with one other vehicle responding to calls to the snow helpline.

More than 250 tonnes of grit will have been used on the borough’s roads by this afternoon.

Oldham Council has 3,500 tonnes of grit salt in stock, which is enough for around 25 days of bad weather.

Councillor Mark Alcock, said: “Having just returned from seeing some of the gritting crews reloading their vehicles before going back out, I would like to thank the teams for all their hard work.” Police, fire crews and traffic officers reported a quiet night with no major problems from the snow.

One traffic officer said: “Most people seem to have stayed at home.”

However, Saddleworth Parish Councillor Ken Hulme said residents had complained to him they had not seen any gritters in Saddleworth by 6pm yesterday.

Residents can call the council snowline on 0161-770 4421 or 0161-770 4423 to make a request for minor roads to be treated.

Pictures: ANTHONY MILLER, DARREN ROBINSON


Van man badly hurt in M62 smash

AN Oldham van driver was seriously injured when three vehicles crashed on the M62 last night.

West Yorkshire Police are appealing for witnesses to the incident which happened on the west bound carriageway at Scammonden around 9.40pm. A Mercedes Sprinter van, a DAF car transporter and a Ford Fiesta were travelling along the motorway when the collision happened.

The van driver, aged 31, was taken to Huddersfield Royal Infirmary. His injuries are not thought to be life threatening.

The motorway was closed until 1.15am today. Anyone who witnessed the collision who has not spoken to police is asked to contact the Motorway Unit on 0845 60 60 606.