Yellow weather warning in place for Cumbria

  • ITV Border reporter Matthew Taylor visits a warm hub as the MetOffice issues a yellow weather warning.

A yellow weather warning for snow and ice has been issued across Cumbria.

The MetOffice is urging drivers to check before they travel from 7pm, 18 November, until 10am, 19 November 2024.

It's likely snow will pile up on the hills with around 10cm above 200m, and upwards of 20cm more than 300m.

The weather service says up to 10cm of snow may settle onto the roads which could create dangerous driving conditions. There is also a possibility of bus and train delays or cancellations.

The MetOffice say if travel is necessary, leave enough time to prepare and check your car before setting off.

Electricity North West is calling for eligible customers to sign up for its free Extra Care Register. The power network operator is ramping up preparations by placing engineers on standby.

Credit: Electricity North West.

Stephanie Trubshaw, Electricity North West's customer and connections director, said: "Our Extra Care Register is a free service which provides extra support to those who might need it if the power goes off. At this time of year we know that power cuts are more likely due to the weather and have more impact due to the cold.

“We have a wide scope of criteria for people to sign up for our free support - from pensionable age or those with young children at home, to those who are medically dependent on electricity."

Network Rail say hundreds of staff will be equipped with specialist kit to help defrost frozen points.

Chris Pye, Network Rail's North West route infrastructure director, said: "Snow and ice always pose a challenge at this time of the year, not only to the track, it can also obscure signals and causes branches to fall from trees on to the line.

"We work hard to ensure that points, which we use to direct trains on the track, don't become compacted with snow and ice. We have teams who can monitor these remotely and further teams on standby ready to respond to heavy snow, should it be needed."

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