Image via WikipediaUK snow cancels the Lincoln Christmas market and public transport, closes airports and more.
BY ethelsmith 
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1st December 2010: Just after 7.30am the snow is falling hard but at least I have arrived
1st December 2010.
I think I am in danger of becoming a snow bore. Still, you know what we English are like. We are obsessed with the weather which is always too hot, too cold, too wet, too dry or too something or other. The current heavy snowfalls though, apart from being dramatic, have been early, widespread and severe.
The 6.50am bus to work was a little late this morning. Still I was grateful it arrived. The walk to work would easily take me a few hours in lovely weather, let alone in deep snow.
There had been a huge amount of fresh snow falling most of the night. The main roads were reasonably clear but the paths and side roads were treacherous. The journey was not bad until we approached the village of Willerby. It had been snowing for some time by now. Visibility was poor and the roads were poor.
Bt the time we reached the hospital site, a little outside of Cottingham, the weather had truly set in. As I disembarked the bus I had no idea where the pavement ended and the road began. I teetered across deep snow. Drivers were stuck, either trying to park or leave the site. Many had abandoned their cars.
Just before I went indoors I took a couple of brief videos. I snapped a little more as I walked along the corridor to my place of work. The scene was both magical and terrifying.
On the hospital ward the night staff were still around. None of them had been able to get their cars out for the long drive home. In some cases it was to be a very long drive. However those abandoned cars had blocked the exit of many staff.
Suffice to say it is chaos.
Coming home at lunchtime the major roads were now a mixture of slush, snow and ice. The paths though have very deep snow in parts and it is hard underfoot. With only a partial thaw today, tomorrow will be worse. The snow is expected to last a few more days at least. Then no doubt flooding will be a problem for some.
Latest Snow news.
Lincoln's famous Christmas Market has been cancelled due to the bad weather. This is the first time it has had to be cancelled.
Many airports around the country are closed. This lunchtime Gatwick and Edinburgh were not operational. Check details before travelling to an airport just in case. Many bus services are running, but slowly. This means that there are delays. Trains in some parts of the country were cancelled. If you have snow related train enquiries ring 08453 017 641.
Scotland has been badly hit and the Forth Bridge is also closed. There have been avalanche warning for the Highlands of Scotland. In my part of the world the Humber Bridge is closed after 10 inches of snow fell.
Thousands of schools around the UK are closed. This often happens as staff live far from their places of work and cannot get to work in bad weather. It is of course bad news for parents and businesses as parents take a day off work to care for their kids.
Christmas shopping has been put on hold and many people are just buying essential items. This means that businesses hoping for an increase in trade due to Christmas shoppers, will be out of luck.
Hospital transport for outpatient and non essential visits has been cancelled to ensure that those needing urgent transport can be accommodated.
Although much of the UK is affected Scotland and parts of the north have been worst hit. London and parts of the south have only seen snow falls in the last 24 or 48 hours. For the rest of us it has been around for almost a week now. As the weather forecaster said, when he showed a part of the north east of England, which includes where I live, this is NOT the place to be today.
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