Huddersfield shivers in coldest December for years

Dec 21 2010 Huddersfield Daily Examiner

HUDDERSFIELD and the rest of the UK are heading into the deep-freeze record books.

And that could be a record dating back a staggering 270 years!

The biting cold continued last night – and with a forecast for the rest of the week for similar temperatures, it looks set to be the coldest December since records began.

Huddersfield saw temperatures plummet to minus 10°C last night, for the second night in a row. And daytime temperatures anywhere in the area struggled to get to freezing.

The good news is that the worst of the snow is over for a while.

But Salendine Nook weather expert Paul Stevens is predicting the biting cold will be with us until the end of the week – with winds making it feel even colder.

“It is exceptional”, said Stevens.

“Our local records suggest it has not been this cold for such a length of time since 1981 and nationally, if it persists, we are looking at the coldest ever month.

“Weather records go back to 1740 and there has not been a December as cold as this in all those years.

“My figures showed temperatures down to minus 10.5 deg overnight and throughout the day yesterday, temperatures struggled to reach minus 2 deg.

“It was the same across the region, with very low temperatures.

“I can see us keeping this cold weather for the next four or five days and with the winds picking up on Wednesday, it could feel even colder.

“The only snow we will get will be the odd flurry but certainly this cold is exceptional.”

Kirklees Council’s gritting crews were out again yesterday evening, tackling the entire priority route networks. Yesterday the only road affected by the weather was the A6024 Holme Moss route, which was closed down into Derbyshire.