The Met Office has delivered its official forecast for Christmas, and most of us can expect things to feel considerably warmer. The milder spell we’re about to experience comes after grim weather caused chaos across parts of the country over the weekend.
Weather experts predict a “grey Christmas”, with some sunshine, and “extremely mild” temperatures. This follows what has been described as a “perfect storm” of poor weather conditions combined with heavy traffic, leading to widespread disruptions during the festive travel rush.
Yellow wind warnings were in place until 9pm on Sunday, affecting Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and regions of England including the North East, North West, South West, West Midlands, Yorkshire, Derbyshire, and Hampshire.
Moreover, the forecasting service has issued a fresh yellow ice warning for parts of north-east Scotland beginning at 9pm on Sunday until 10am on Monday. Compounding the travel misery, an airport was plunged into emergency mode on Sunday when a plane suffered a nose wheel collapse upon landing in Belfast.
Although there were no passengers onboard, the four crew members experienced a “hard landing” Sunday afternoon, which initiated emergency protocols at Belfast City Airport and resulted in the closure of the runway for the remainder of the day.
Heathrow Airport announced on social media that normal operations have resumed following the reopening of the previously affected runway. Advising passengers, the statement said: “Passengers impacted by yesterday’s runway closure or those due to travel today should check the status of their flight with the airline.”
The airport had seen around 100 flights cancelled on Sunday due to strong winds and airspace restrictions. A Heathrow spokesperson stated: “Due to strong winds and airspace restrictions, a small number of flights have been cancelled (on Sunday). This will ensure the vast majority of passengers can still travel as planned.”
“We know how important travel at this time of year is and have extra colleagues on hand in our terminals to support people on their journeys. We encourage passengers to check with their airline for the latest information about their flight.”
Several Loganair flights from Glasgow Airport to the Hebridean islands were also cancelled, and 18 CalMac ferry routes were axed. Meanwhile, the weekend’s lowest temperature was recorded at Killylane in Co Antrim, Northern Ireland, where the mercury fell to minus 0.4C on Sunday.
Met Office meteorologist Dan Stroud said: “We’re expecting to see some sunny spells further east and a lot of cloud from the west. Temperatures should rise considerably and it will be extremely mild over Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
“In England and Wales, temperatures will be well above average with some grey in the mix. We’re expecting an average of around 12C or 13C on Christmas Eve and 11C or 12C on Christmas Day.
“The usual average for this time of year is 7C or 8C so we’ll be around double where we usually are. Overnight temperatures in Scotland for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day will be extremely mild.”