After our week of sunshine, the weather looks set to change dramatically for us over the next few days. With snow already see in the more Northern parts of England and in Scotland it looks like our early summer hasn’t lasted.
Snow, sleet and rain hounded down on Britain last night and left 10,000 people without any power across the North East of England. There is yellow weather warning for Scotland, Wales, northern England and the Midlands. This is after gale force winds reached 80 mph last night.
According to forecasters, 15 – 20cm of snow fell last night in the Peak District, Pennies and Cumbria and with this kind of weather there are many travel disruptions around.
After writing about the high temperatures in Aboyne last week, this area has also seen 2cm of snow as the weather seems to be playing bizarre tricks on us.
This, however, is a good time to make sure all air conditioning units are functioning as well as they should be. From looking at the dramatic weather changes in the last week, who knows when we will see our next glimpse of summer, could be next week with these changes! By cleaning the units out and getting professionals to check them over as we have previously written about is essential. This is especially true with the weather as unpredictable as it is now. Scorching temperatures in the office without working air conditioning is unbearable.
This cold weather is set to move south leaving behind wintery conditions although there isn’t any forecast snow and we still have a little sunshine and highs of 13 throughout the week. This, at least for the south, is normal March temperatures.
Hasn’t it been a glorious month! The weather has been beautiful all over the UK and we’ve experienced one of the hottest March’s on record. So here at GT Refrigeration we thought it would be a great time to look at the hottest temperatures ever recorded in the UK. So why not check out our infographic below:
We can see that the hottest temperatures recorded are all located in South, (lucky for us). Although this March we didn’t beat any temperature records (except in Scotland) the air con has definitely been on in our office all week.
We can also see that for ¼ of the year we need to have air conditioning, especially if you still want your staff to come to work even during the summer time!
If this month is anything to go by, we think that we are going to be seeing many more hotter days year on year, let us know what you think. Do you think you will be switching your air con on much earlier on in the year?
The annual growth of food sales increased by 2.3% in February as consumers began stocking up on food in the cold weather. The latest report from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) state sales picked up after negative growth in January.
As the temperature shows no sign of getting warmer, people have been driven to buy increased amounts of cupboard foods such as tinned goods, pasta and soups. Winter vegetables, frozen goods and comfort foods have also been popular, such as pies, pizzas and puddings.
With this boost in consumer spending, food retailers have the increased pressure of ensuring they have a consistent supply of these popular goods. Just as important, is the requirement for the frozen and refrigerated produce to remain fresh and stored at the right temperature. Therefore it is important for all retailers, ranging from large nationwide companies to small local shops, to maintain their refrigeration equipment. In order to benefit from this increase in demand, the products provided need to meet consumer expectations as well as health and safety standards.
Eventually when the weather changes with the seasons to summer, demand for chilled foods and frozen desserts is likely to increase. Once again, the need for top quality refrigeration equipment will arise. It is recommended that providers of this specialist equipment pay attention to the weather and stay alert to the changing demands food retailers experience, as they will require refrigeration services on an regular basis.
It has been claimed that the Government is to use the UK’s most unpredictable feature to promote the country by trying to persuade tourists that the weather is not as bad as they think!
Ministers believe that tourists do not realise that the weather in Britain can be pleasant as other cities like New York and Paris and are launching a marketing campaign to tempt tourists away from their air conditioning units in their hot countries and come to visit us in Britain!
Culture Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, announcing the Government’s “Great” advertising campaign in 14 cities, said, “We have lower rainfall than Paris. We have to make sure people understand the reality about the weather.
“It is not always as hot as New York but much more pleasant. Come and get a suntan in St James’s Park — you’ll find that it is much more pleasant than a crowded beach on the Med.”
According to tourist board VisitBritain, London is drier than New York, Brisbane, Rome and Rio de Janerio, and has a higher minimum daily temperature than Dublin, Toronto and Seattle.
However, we all know that it’s probably not the best time to run the campaign, with the snowfall and freezing weather we’re having, as The Times pointed out.
A Met Office forecaster, Dave Britton, said “If you are not happy with the weather one day, you might be the next.”
Among the “Great” adverts and marketing campaign to promote tourism in Britain include a Union Jack livery on a New York subway train and 200 taxis in Delhi, as well as a giant flag projected onto Sugar Loaf mountain in Rio de Janeiro. Union Station in Toronto will also be covered in posters advertising British heritage and culture.
Hunt also added, “Critics will say we’ve gone berserk in terms of austerity. But we say this is the biggest chance we will have to market Britain in our lifetimes. So we are telling the naysayers to get stuffed and are going for it.”
Most of us in the UK have noticed the delayed winter and plummeting temperatures that has been happening this week, but forecasters have predicted that it will become milder over the weekend.
However, even though it will get milder, the weather is still up and down, as it has been expected that the temperature will still fall below -8C.
Gritting teams, hospitals and emergency services are on maximum alert, with the Meteorological Office predicting “a 100% probability of severe conditions across most of England this week”.
The chillier weather follows the stalling of rain from the west and the Atlantic. An area of high pressure over western Russia and Scandinavia has chilled them and started to move them back on easterly winds.
Forecaster with MeteoGroup, Clare Allen, said, “The easterlies are bringing snow showers off the North Sea, and even London is likely to have a maximum temperature no higher than 4C, so it’s going to be pretty cold.”
There has been severe weather warnings for ice, issued by the Met Office, which are likely to stay in force until Saturday. Allen said, “If people aren’t careful driving, then it could cause disruption. Anywhere that is wet, ice is expected to form.”
The UK has reacted in its traditional way by shopping for cold weather equipment last minute.
Debenhams has reported an increase in thermal underwear by 17%, 16% rise in electric blankets, high tog duvets by 40% and slippers by 49%. However, it seems people in the UK are either going on holiday or expecting the sun to come back out soon as there has also been an 18% rise in demand for swimwear and bikinis. The demand of air conditioning units and fans has remained stable.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health asked for people to keep an eye on their older neighbours. He said, “During this period of cold weather we would advise people to check local weather forecasts for the latest information on weather conditions and staying safe when outdoors.
“We are working closely with the NHS and local authorities to ensure vulnerable people stay well during cold weather and get the help they need within their communities.”
Weather forecasters have predicted snow and brutal weather conditions. As Britain is expected to reach freezing temperatures this winter, air conditioning in our cars is probably the last thing on our minds.
However, keeping the air conditioning in your car maintained properly will ensure that the heating also works, and in this cold weather, getting stuck in a traffic jam without heating will be something everyone will want to avoid.
Mechanical or electrical defects on your car’s air con can happen at any time and can be expensive to fix, due to the many components within the system including compressors, thermostats, condensers, electric motors and rheostats. It can require removing the car’s dashboard to get to some of the parts, and it one case, has cost a massive £2,038.41 to repair.
Last winter, the UK was covered in centimetres of snowfall and darkness and there were a number of fatalities and car accidents across the regions.
Making sure that your air conditioning system is in order can protect you and your passengers against the big freeze and avoid the risk of freezing in your vehicle. A car warranty plan that provides cover on your air conditioning, drivers can have peace of mind if anything goes wrong over Christmas – it’s not a good time of year for a hefty garage bill.
To prepare the public for winter weather, the government has already launched its ‘Get Ready for Winter’ campaigns, to help avoid the manic that the weather brought to the UK last year. Last year, December 2010 because the coldest in the UK for 100 years.
Britain has, this past week, been blanketed by fog. This has caused flights to be cancelled and delayed across the country which has left travellers, understandably, furious. However, there is simply nothing that can be done, except to wait for the fog to clear of course.
A spokesman for the BAA, Heathrow’s operators, has warned passengers to check with their airlines before travelling due to the fact that Northern Europe has been affected by the fog as well.
The spokesman was quoted saying: “Today 11 arrivals and 12 departure flights have been cancelled and we are advising all our passengers to check with their individual airlines before travelling.”
Meanwhile, Gatwick and Stansted have been able to operate as normal despite the poor weather.
It has also been reported that some areas of the country could witness some snow fall in coming days. Frost and gales are also in the pipeline.
Last weekend it was reported that visibility on some roads was less than 100 yards, due to the fog. I for one was driving south towards Basingstoke and could only see literally 10 metres in front. Dangerous stuff and not something I want to experience again anytime soon.
This cold weather has followed one of the warmest autumns on record, and has, to some extent surprised us all. However, we must remember it is late November and it’s not long now until Christmas rolls around for another year.
Furthermore, this winter weather is certainly sticking around. It is likely that we will see strong winds across England and Wales in coming days, and Met Office spokesman, Dan Williams, has said: “We will be seeing colder nights because of the clear skies.”
Jonathan Powell, of Positive Weather Solutions, has added: “There is a rain-bearing front that could bring a covering of snow on Thursday and Friday in the mountainous parts of the north. Roads will be pretty treacherous as any overnight rain will quickly freeze.”
With such weather now forecast, it is more likely that we will be switching our central heating on rather than turning to our air conditioning units!
If anyone is out on the roads in coming days, be sure to take care and keep your wits about you in icy conditions.
The capital city of Mongolia, Ulan Bator, is planning to stay cool in the hot and humid summer months by ignoring air conditioning in favour of creating an enormous artificial urban glacier. An interesting plan indeed, if somewhat a little strange!
It has been reported that the capital city of the country will try to capture some of the very cool winter temperatures in enormous ice blocks that will slowly melt over the summer, and then cool the city. The aim is to build artificial ice shields, known as “naleds”, that will occur naturally in climates in far northern areas of the globe. Naleds can also grow to be over seven metres thick. That sure is one giant block of ice!
Furthermore, they grow when the river water pushes through cracks in the surface of the ice during the day, and then freezes at night time, and thus creates an extra layer of ice.
ECOS & EMI, a Mongolian engineering consortium, is set to attempt to replicate this process by drilling several bore holes into the ice that is currently forming over the Tuul River. This process will be repeated again and again throughout the winter months in order to thicken the ice considerably.
It is interesting to note that the North Korean military used naleds to build river crossings for tanks during the winter, and Russia has also previously used them as drilling platforms. However, engineers normally see them as a threat to railways and bridges. So it is not all positive news surrounding naleds.
The Anglo-Mongolian firm believes that their proposed use in Ulan Bator may set a positive example that will allow northern cities around the world to save on summer air conditioning costs, regulate drinking supplies, and create cool microclimates.
A Mongolian based geologist, Robin Grayson, has stated: “Everyone is panicking about melting glaciers and icecaps, but nobody has yet found a cheap, environmentally friendly alternative. If you know how to manipulate them, naled ice shields can repair permafrost and build cool parks in cities.”
A naled is thought to work in a climate where the winter months dip to as low as somewhere between -5˚C and -20˚C and where the summer months are unbearably hot. However, there is yet to be any proof that such a plan could work, and, evidently they will not be possible in a climate such as the one we have here in Great Britain, and it is therefore expected that sales of air conditioning units will likely remain the same, if not increase, in the UK next year.
In one of our previous blog posts that we wrote a couple of weeks ago, we mentioned how much of a disappointing summer we’ve had and how it was now officially over. However, reports and predictions reveal that we now face one of the hottest autumns for 25 years.
The best weather has been predicted to grace us at the end of this week and around the beginning of October. However, the UK Met Office Chief Forecaster, Chris Tubbs, said “It’s too early to give precise detail, but the dominant signal is for much of the UK to get some fine weather from Tuesday onwards. Temperatures could be unseasonably warm in places, certainly well above the average for this time of year.”
He carries on to say that “The settled weather is set to last for several days and could carry on into the start of October, giving us a welcome respite from the windy and wet conditions which have dominated for the past few weeks”.
According to predictions by the UK Met Office, the south and east of England will see the best of the weather, where temperatures could reach 27C, hotter than Hawaii!
I’m sure that most people will be planning some daytrips or weekends away to the seaside or park, but it’s definitely not time to put the barbeque or air conditioning in south east London away just yet.
If you are planning on enjoying the sunshine, remember to protect yourself from the strong UV rays by avoiding the midday heat and covering up your skin with a high factor sun cream.
The eruption of Iceland’s Grimsvotn has left holiday makers across Europe experience delays or cancelled flights. It has spread fears that we could see a repeat of last year’s ash cloud that caused chaos all over Europe. However, it has done more than disrupt air travel.
Thora Arnorsdottir, a senior reporter from the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service went to visit the small town of Kirkjubaejarklaustur which has been covered in ash and is totally shut out of daylight. All the buildings and vehicles are covered in dust. Arnorsdottir explains that “At the end of May during normal circumstances, the town is usually bright for at least 20 hours a day but at the moment people could mistake it for winter.”
Cars are still working and running around the small town despite the thick ash covering them. People must obviously drive more carefully, avoid turning the air conditioning on and remember to change the filters frequently.
Unnar Steinn, who owns the only store in town, is still open for business as usual. He states that “People are just staying at home and they have to get food from somewhere.”
No one has the courage to leave the house without wearing a protective mask or eye goggles.
Arnorsdottir said “It’s hard to breathe. It’s physically impossible to stay outside more than a couple of minutes at the time. You cry constantly as the eyes try to fight the ash.”
One resident said “At least it’s the 21st Century where we can at least flee into a concrete building and catch our breath.”
Despite the ash covering up the town, the local residents have not evacuated the place.
The residents that Arnorsdottir met have said, “We will get through this together like the generations before us and it’s going to be over soon. We are just hoping Katla doesn’t erupt next year.”
Here’s hoping!
Contact Use
For further information please
complete the form below.
After our week of sunshine, the weather looks set to change dramatically for us over the next few days. With snow already see in the more Northern parts of England and in Scotland it looks like our early summer hasn’t lasted.
Snow, sleet and rain hounded down on Britain last night and left 10,000 people without any power across the North East of England. There is yellow weather warning for Scotland, Wales, northern England and the Midlands. This is after gale force winds reached 80 mph last night.
According to forecasters, 15 – 20cm of snow fell last night in the Peak District, Pennies and Cumbria and with this kind of weather there are many travel disruptions around.
After writing about the high temperatures in Aboyne last week, this area has also seen 2cm of snow as the weather seems to be playing bizarre tricks on us.
This, however, is a good time to make sure all air conditioning units are functioning as well as they should be. From looking at the dramatic weather changes in the last week, who knows when we will see our next glimpse of summer, could be next week with these changes! By cleaning the units out and getting professionals to check them over as we have previously written about is essential. This is especially true with the weather as unpredictable as it is now. Scorching temperatures in the office without working air conditioning is unbearable.
This cold weather is set to move south leaving behind wintery conditions although there isn’t any forecast snow and we still have a little sunshine and highs of 13 throughout the week. This, at least for the south, is normal March temperatures.
The Hottest Places in the UK
Hasn’t it been a glorious month! The weather has been beautiful all over the UK and we’ve experienced one of the hottest March’s on record. So here at GT Refrigeration we thought it would be a great time to look at the hottest temperatures ever recorded in the UK. So why not check out our infographic below:
We can see that the hottest temperatures recorded are all located in South, (lucky for us). Although this March we didn’t beat any temperature records (except in Scotland) the air con has definitely been on in our office all week.
We can also see that for ¼ of the year we need to have air conditioning, especially if you still want your staff to come to work even during the summer time!
If this month is anything to go by, we think that we are going to be seeing many more hotter days year on year, let us know what you think. Do you think you will be switching your air con on much earlier on in the year?
Food Retailers Benefit from Cold Weather as Sales Increase
As the temperature shows no sign of getting warmer, people have been driven to buy increased amounts of cupboard foods such as tinned goods, pasta and soups. Winter vegetables, frozen goods and comfort foods have also been popular, such as pies, pizzas and puddings.
With this boost in consumer spending, food retailers have the increased pressure of ensuring they have a consistent supply of these popular goods. Just as important, is the requirement for the frozen and refrigerated produce to remain fresh and stored at the right temperature. Therefore it is important for all retailers, ranging from large nationwide companies to small local shops, to maintain their refrigeration equipment. In order to benefit from this increase in demand, the products provided need to meet consumer expectations as well as health and safety standards.
Eventually when the weather changes with the seasons to summer, demand for chilled foods and frozen desserts is likely to increase. Once again, the need for top quality refrigeration equipment will arise. It is recommended that providers of this specialist equipment pay attention to the weather and stay alert to the changing demands food retailers experience, as they will require refrigeration services on an regular basis.
The Culture Secretary Believes that the British Weather is better than Tourists Think
Ministers believe that tourists do not realise that the weather in Britain can be pleasant as other cities like New York and Paris and are launching a marketing campaign to tempt tourists away from their air conditioning units in their hot countries and come to visit us in Britain!
Culture Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, announcing the Government’s “Great” advertising campaign in 14 cities, said, “We have lower rainfall than Paris. We have to make sure people understand the reality about the weather.
“It is not always as hot as New York but much more pleasant. Come and get a suntan in St James’s Park — you’ll find that it is much more pleasant than a crowded beach on the Med.”
According to tourist board VisitBritain, London is drier than New York, Brisbane, Rome and Rio de Janerio, and has a higher minimum daily temperature than Dublin, Toronto and Seattle.
However, we all know that it’s probably not the best time to run the campaign, with the snowfall and freezing weather we’re having, as The Times pointed out.
A Met Office forecaster, Dave Britton, said “If you are not happy with the weather one day, you might be the next.”
Among the “Great” adverts and marketing campaign to promote tourism in Britain include a Union Jack livery on a New York subway train and 200 taxis in Delhi, as well as a giant flag projected onto Sugar Loaf mountain in Rio de Janeiro. Union Station in Toronto will also be covered in posters advertising British heritage and culture.
Hunt also added, “Critics will say we’ve gone berserk in terms of austerity. But we say this is the biggest chance we will have to market Britain in our lifetimes. So we are telling the naysayers to get stuffed and are going for it.”
Snow Showers and Freezing Temperatures upon Us
However, even though it will get milder, the weather is still up and down, as it has been expected that the temperature will still fall below -8C.
Gritting teams, hospitals and emergency services are on maximum alert, with the Meteorological Office predicting “a 100% probability of severe conditions across most of England this week”.
The chillier weather follows the stalling of rain from the west and the Atlantic. An area of high pressure over western Russia and Scandinavia has chilled them and started to move them back on easterly winds.
Forecaster with MeteoGroup, Clare Allen, said, “The easterlies are bringing snow showers off the North Sea, and even London is likely to have a maximum temperature no higher than 4C, so it’s going to be pretty cold.”
There has been severe weather warnings for ice, issued by the Met Office, which are likely to stay in force until Saturday. Allen said, “If people aren’t careful driving, then it could cause disruption. Anywhere that is wet, ice is expected to form.”
The UK has reacted in its traditional way by shopping for cold weather equipment last minute.
Debenhams has reported an increase in thermal underwear by 17%, 16% rise in electric blankets, high tog duvets by 40% and slippers by 49%. However, it seems people in the UK are either going on holiday or expecting the sun to come back out soon as there has also been an 18% rise in demand for swimwear and bikinis. The demand of air conditioning units and fans has remained stable.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health asked for people to keep an eye on their older neighbours. He said, “During this period of cold weather we would advise people to check local weather forecasts for the latest information on weather conditions and staying safe when outdoors.
“We are working closely with the NHS and local authorities to ensure vulnerable people stay well during cold weather and get the help they need within their communities.”
Look after Your Car’s Air Con This Christmas
However, keeping the air conditioning in your car maintained properly will ensure that the heating also works, and in this cold weather, getting stuck in a traffic jam without heating will be something everyone will want to avoid.
Mechanical or electrical defects on your car’s air con can happen at any time and can be expensive to fix, due to the many components within the system including compressors, thermostats, condensers, electric motors and rheostats. It can require removing the car’s dashboard to get to some of the parts, and it one case, has cost a massive £2,038.41 to repair.
Last winter, the UK was covered in centimetres of snowfall and darkness and there were a number of fatalities and car accidents across the regions.
Making sure that your air conditioning system is in order can protect you and your passengers against the big freeze and avoid the risk of freezing in your vehicle. A car warranty plan that provides cover on your air conditioning, drivers can have peace of mind if anything goes wrong over Christmas – it’s not a good time of year for a hefty garage bill.
To prepare the public for winter weather, the government has already launched its ‘Get Ready for Winter’ campaigns, to help avoid the manic that the weather brought to the UK last year. Last year, December 2010 because the coldest in the UK for 100 years.
Winter Weather Wonders the Land
Britain has, this past week, been blanketed by fog. This has caused flights to be cancelled and delayed across the country which has left travellers, understandably, furious. However, there is simply nothing that can be done, except to wait for the fog to clear of course.
A spokesman for the BAA, Heathrow’s operators, has warned passengers to check with their airlines before travelling due to the fact that Northern Europe has been affected by the fog as well.
The spokesman was quoted saying: “Today 11 arrivals and 12 departure flights have been cancelled and we are advising all our passengers to check with their individual airlines before travelling.”
Meanwhile, Gatwick and Stansted have been able to operate as normal despite the poor weather.
It has also been reported that some areas of the country could witness some snow fall in coming days. Frost and gales are also in the pipeline.
Last weekend it was reported that visibility on some roads was less than 100 yards, due to the fog. I for one was driving south towards Basingstoke and could only see literally 10 metres in front. Dangerous stuff and not something I want to experience again anytime soon.
This cold weather has followed one of the warmest autumns on record, and has, to some extent surprised us all. However, we must remember it is late November and it’s not long now until Christmas rolls around for another year.
Furthermore, this winter weather is certainly sticking around. It is likely that we will see strong winds across England and Wales in coming days, and Met Office spokesman, Dan Williams, has said: “We will be seeing colder nights because of the clear skies.”
Jonathan Powell, of Positive Weather Solutions, has added: “There is a rain-bearing front that could bring a covering of snow on Thursday and Friday in the mountainous parts of the north. Roads will be pretty treacherous as any overnight rain will quickly freeze.”
With such weather now forecast, it is more likely that we will be switching our central heating on rather than turning to our air conditioning units!
If anyone is out on the roads in coming days, be sure to take care and keep your wits about you in icy conditions.
Mongolia to Trial Natural Air Con
The capital city of Mongolia, Ulan Bator, is planning to stay cool in the hot and humid summer months by ignoring air conditioning in favour of creating an enormous artificial urban glacier. An interesting plan indeed, if somewhat a little strange!
It has been reported that the capital city of the country will try to capture some of the very cool winter temperatures in enormous ice blocks that will slowly melt over the summer, and then cool the city. The aim is to build artificial ice shields, known as “naleds”, that will occur naturally in climates in far northern areas of the globe. Naleds can also grow to be over seven metres thick. That sure is one giant block of ice!
Furthermore, they grow when the river water pushes through cracks in the surface of the ice during the day, and then freezes at night time, and thus creates an extra layer of ice.
ECOS & EMI, a Mongolian engineering consortium, is set to attempt to replicate this process by drilling several bore holes into the ice that is currently forming over the Tuul River. This process will be repeated again and again throughout the winter months in order to thicken the ice considerably.
It is interesting to note that the North Korean military used naleds to build river crossings for tanks during the winter, and Russia has also previously used them as drilling platforms. However, engineers normally see them as a threat to railways and bridges. So it is not all positive news surrounding naleds.
The Anglo-Mongolian firm believes that their proposed use in Ulan Bator may set a positive example that will allow northern cities around the world to save on summer air conditioning costs, regulate drinking supplies, and create cool microclimates.
A Mongolian based geologist, Robin Grayson, has stated: “Everyone is panicking about melting glaciers and icecaps, but nobody has yet found a cheap, environmentally friendly alternative. If you know how to manipulate them, naled ice shields can repair permafrost and build cool parks in cities.”
A naled is thought to work in a climate where the winter months dip to as low as somewhere between -5˚C and -20˚C and where the summer months are unbearably hot. However, there is yet to be any proof that such a plan could work, and, evidently they will not be possible in a climate such as the one we have here in Great Britain, and it is therefore expected that sales of air conditioning units will likely remain the same, if not increase, in the UK next year.
Prepare Yourselves for the Hottest Autumn
The best weather has been predicted to grace us at the end of this week and around the beginning of October. However, the UK Met Office Chief Forecaster, Chris Tubbs, said “It’s too early to give precise detail, but the dominant signal is for much of the UK to get some fine weather from Tuesday onwards. Temperatures could be unseasonably warm in places, certainly well above the average for this time of year.”
He carries on to say that “The settled weather is set to last for several days and could carry on into the start of October, giving us a welcome respite from the windy and wet conditions which have dominated for the past few weeks”.
According to predictions by the UK Met Office, the south and east of England will see the best of the weather, where temperatures could reach 27C, hotter than Hawaii!
I’m sure that most people will be planning some daytrips or weekends away to the seaside or park, but it’s definitely not time to put the barbeque or air conditioning in south east London away just yet.
If you are planning on enjoying the sunshine, remember to protect yourself from the strong UV rays by avoiding the midday heat and covering up your skin with a high factor sun cream.
The Volcanic Ash Strikes Again
T
he eruption of Iceland’s Grimsvotn has left holiday makers across Europe experience delays or cancelled flights. It has spread fears that we could see a repeat of last year’s ash cloud that caused chaos all over Europe. However, it has done more than disrupt air travel.
Thora Arnorsdottir, a senior reporter from the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service went to visit the small town of Kirkjubaejarklaustur which has been covered in ash and is totally shut out of daylight. All the buildings and vehicles are covered in dust. Arnorsdottir explains that “At the end of May during normal circumstances, the town is usually bright for at least 20 hours a day but at the moment people could mistake it for winter.”
Cars are still working and running around the small town despite the thick ash covering them. People must obviously drive more carefully, avoid turning the air conditioning on and remember to change the filters frequently.
Unnar Steinn, who owns the only store in town, is still open for business as usual. He states that “People are just staying at home and they have to get food from somewhere.”
No one has the courage to leave the house without wearing a protective mask or eye goggles.
Arnorsdottir said “It’s hard to breathe. It’s physically impossible to stay outside more than a couple of minutes at the time. You cry constantly as the eyes try to fight the ash.”
One resident said “At least it’s the 21st Century where we can at least flee into a concrete building and catch our breath.”
Despite the ash covering up the town, the local residents have not evacuated the place.
The residents that Arnorsdottir met have said, “We will get through this together like the generations before us and it’s going to be over soon. We are just hoping Katla doesn’t erupt next year.”
Here’s hoping!
Contact Use
For further information please complete the form below.
Or contact us on:
01932 564 635
sales@gtrefrigeration.co.uk