Wrexham Snow Updates – Friday 22nd March

The promised snow has hit Wrexham overnight, with light flurries occurring late in the evening on higher ground with lower ground being hit around midnight. This morning we woke up to several inches of snow, and this is our live updates of the day from 6:10am to 11:30pm.

Thank You! Many thanks to all who have taken part in today’s Live Updates, we cant do it without your help so thanks to all who have sent us emails tweets and the like! We know we have not used all but we have tried to use as many as possible but we appreciate each and every one. Fingers crossed the snow goes as quickly as it came…!

23:30 We are winding up our live coverage of today after running all the way through from 6:10am this morning! Rich Milne sums up the snow today with this picture from outside his kitchen window in Mountain View, drifting against the window! Paul Wiggins makes a request for everyone in the morning ‘Drivers, please clean your roof of snow. Nearly a bump on Chester Rd as a car slowed snow slid off roof and covered windscreen’ !

11pm A look ahead to overnight… and the verdict is more snow! The radar below is of the situation overnight around 1am, with snow slowy bands drifting north east. There are more bands meandering up through in the morning, and overnight temperatures will bounce around zero degrees Celsius. With the wind blowing to anyone outside it will feel around -5C so quite cold indeed!

22:46 Natalie Jeffs ‏says “In Penycae, went out an hour ago to measure the depth of snow, 13″ but in drifted snow parts its 25″ ”

22:40 Snow keeps coming, Alicia has sent us this picture which shows up the depth of snow in bird table terms!

22:04 Things have been treacherous throughout the day up in the Tan-y-Fron / Brymbo area and this recent pic from Katie (@KATIETAFFY) shows how some cars have been left in the middle of the road and difficult to pass.

22:20 Lindsey Morris warns “People with conservatories be careful. Snow has fallen off the roof nd gone straight through conservatory roof. Luckily nobody hurt!”

21:53 Thanks to Alys Griffiths (@alyswyn_) for sending in a pic of her dog burrowing in the snow earlier today (or just getting lost we can’t decide which).

21:42 Our reporter in Garden Village says there are very few cars about and Chester Road is ‘white’. Snow continues to fall and the latest radar image shows no let up over the next couple of hours.

21:28 Lindsay Prime (@lindsayprime) has tweeted us the latest scene in Ponciau where it looks like a new layer of snow has accumulated over the tracks in the road.

21:10 Lots of you have tweeted or sent in photos and videos today, Glen Allen (@GlenAllenTV) has gone one step further with his own tongue in cheek news report which you can view here.

20:30 Snow still falling albeit light, apparently there’s a Next sale on tomorrow so if you are thinking of queueing up at an unsociable hour make sure you travel safe (and we hope it’s worth it!).

19:00 The main band of snow has passed for now (A), and we are in the light flurries indicated with B. Later on this evening around 11pm band C will be coming over.

18:33 With snow still coming down in parts Sian tells us “Don’t bother driving on high street, Pentre Broughton. Just measured nearly 2ft deep in windswept parts of garden” and Gordon says “Cars struggling to get up the main hill in Rhos.”

18:00 Jemma has said “Just came home from Chester via a483 no issues at all that way. All main roads are fine.” Mr Robertson has taken these pictures of the A483 from Pandy, showing just that:

17:41 Nia has sent us this picture showing the snow thickness that has dropped on Coedpoeth which she says is about 13 inches deep – and is still falling!

17:25 Several more people have been in touch to say Gresford, Llay, Pandy, Rhosddu etc also had flicking lights. Leah Baines has decided to put tea on sooner as a result: “getting the tea on quick home made cheese burgers onion rings and chips if anyone interested”

17:16 Power flickering around town – had reports of similar from Borras, Ponciau, Smithfield, Goulbourne and Pentre Broughton so far.

17:10 Aside from cars in snow, rulers sticking out of drifts and kids in bathtubs in Moss another mainstay of any snow coverage is dogs playing! Lowri Vaughan ‏tweeted us this textbook shot of her two dogs Lexi & Lenni trying to catch a snowball:

17:02 Callum has sent us this picture of a very snowy Rhiwabon train station :

16:51 Chris Addison has just tweeted saying his show tomorrow has been cancelled due to the weather. He says hes ‘gutted’ and it will be rearranged. If you dont know who he is, this update is irrelevant!

16:50 The latest shot we have just taken of the A483 bypass, looking nice and clear:

16:45 John Jones sent this wonderfully crafted ‘angry snow birds’ picture:

16:37 Good to see Wrexham getting a good 2 minute odd report on the snow via Sky News! Nice and positive showing the fun being had in the snow and some independent traders in the town centre.

16:20 We mentioned earlier our reporter James had spotted cars sheltering under the bypass in Bersham, here is a picture of said cars!

16:15 Here is the radar picture as of 6pm tonight, the red being the snow that is passing over us right now. We have one band of snow ending, with more bands of rain coming from the south west later on. Previously this has turned to snow when it gets up to us here in Wrexham:

16:10 More on the A483 crash – two black cars slid into the central reservation barrier.

15:55 Radar check! Seems as though the light snowfall will continue with a possible increase in intensity around 5PM.

15:52 Soo Moulton-Wilde has just tweeted this magnificent easter bunny, who doesn’t seem to be put off by the unseasonably cold weather!

15:48 Sgt Mark Jones (@NWPMarkJones) has just tweeted to say there were no injuries involved in the accident on the A483.

15:37 Joey (@Josephnewnes) has tweeted us to inform us there has been a road traffic accident on the A483 Southbound between the Gresford and Mold turnoff. It is thought the accident involved 2 black cars after they slid into the central reservation. More as we have it…..

15:35 Not really a snow update but just to let Wrexham FC fans know the team have made it to Wembley safely!

15:23 Jake Davies in Llay has gone all out with this snowman build. Good work Jake!

15:17 The weather radar’s now predicting a slight respite for the next hour before a heavy band hits a little later…

15:08 As the snow comes down thick and (kind of) fast, Ian Pickawin (@TROUBLEAGAIN09) has sent in this pic of his dog Jessie enjoying the snow up in Brymbo…

14:50 Just a reminder to send your pics in to us here at [email protected], and thanks for all the ones we’ve received so far.

14.36 Kevin Worrall has sent this photo of Joanne Monk posing on a balcony apparently ‘enjoying the spring weather’!

14:25 Here’s the latest view from our town centre office, snow coming down steadily..

14:08 Some of you have been asking whether there’s any taxis running. Nige from Central cars in Llay has given us a call to let us know they are running on a limited service and can be contacted on 01978 855566.

14:00 Kelly Davies (@Treacletartish) has sent us the latest measurement from Tan-y-Fron, which disputes our earlier claim of 23-24cm as apparently there’s now 35cm!!

13:49 Our reporter James has spotted 7 abandoned cars in the Bersham area as the snow outside our window in the town centre is getting heavier!

13:40 A sure sign Wrexham is one of the worst areas hit – Sky News are in town and have just broadcast live from what looked to be the Waterworld car park!

13:26 Sean McGrane has provided us with this headcam view of driving down First Avenue in Gwersyllt around 12PM earlier!

13:15 We’ve just had a nose at the radar and it looks as though the light snow will continue for some time before getting progressively worse from around 3PM. Shades of red on the radar denote how intense the snow is – at 3 o’clock, it’s deep red!

12:55 Sian has been in touch to update us on the situation in Southsea saying “Cars stuck here people havent learned and are stuck and blocking roads and more people”.

12:45 More fun , this time via Anthea who sent us this picture saying “Having fun in ponciau!”

12:37 We are starting to get some fun photos now of people enjoying the snow, this Snow Dalek was created by Luke Wong aged 10:

12:24 The latest view of the A483 from the Pandy bridge. Roads pretty clear now compared to earlier! The bridge however was a death trap, and one enterprising individual was using it as a personal toboggan run!

12:20 North Wales Police have issued a further statement advising motorists to take extreme care on the roads following adverse weather overnight. “There has been significant snowfall in the Wrexham and the Flintshire areas which has and continues to cause significant disruption in the eastern area of the force. Additional police resources – suitable weather vehicles – have been deployed.

Chief Inspector Dan Tipton said: “Motorists in the counties of Wrexham and Flintshire are being urged to take extreme care on the roads, and if possible to travel only on main routes – avoiding travelling on all unclassified and minor roads.”

12:15 Another indication of the intensity of the snow, this time a picture by J Boardman from Tanyfron of the drift depth:

12:07 Marcin has sent this picture from Poplar Road in Penycae indicating the amount of snow that fell:

11:57 A Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board Spokesperson had said “Following the impact of the heavy snow fall this morning, we have taken the difficult decision to cancel all outpatient appointments at the Wrexham Maelor hospital today as driving conditions remain extremely difficult in the area.

“We will be contacting all patients today to rearrange their appointments and we apologise for any inconvenience.
As the winter weather is predicted to continue over the weekend, we would also like to remind patients that they can help us free up emergency medical care for those facing life threatening illness or injuries by choosing well for the right treatment.”

11:48 The Erbistock area has some phone lines down.

11:47 Mark tells us of some snow effects in First Avenue, Gwersyllt. “Cars getting stuck and slipping everywhere, one car has smoke coming from Engine”.

11:44 RETRACTION! Earlier we referred to this being ‘snowmageddon’. After reading about THUNDERSNOW in Birmingham we think our snowfall was actually quite tame. For those wanting to know more about Thundersnow you can read about it here on Wikipedia.

11:40 Emma says “Good ol farmers clearing the roads with their tractors! Just seen one clear Jeffrey’s road!”

10:35 Just spotted on Facebook that tonights Michael Jackson Tribute Show in the William Aston Hall has been cancelled due to the weather. Thats Bad.

11:26 Some more detail, it has formally reopened however the traffic is still very very slow. Feeder routes on to the bypass at junction 4 are still clogged up as well.

11:20Radio Five Live have just said that the A483 south bound past Wrexham has reopened…

11:15 We asked Wrexham Council if the rumours are true that they are looking to pop a bid in for the Winter Olympics:

@wrexham We cam neither confirm or deny this rumour.

— Wrexham Council (@wrexhamcbc) March 22, 2013

11:00 Wrexham FC’s players are heading to Wembley, and The Beasts video diary is happening despite the snow! Here is the manager Andy Morrell and Mark ‘Tarantino’ Creighton with an icy coach behind the icy coach…

10:55 By our maths people have been stuck on the bypass for about 2.5 hours so far… It is the southbound lane that is affected.

10:53 @bellecote says “Strongly advise people to avoid the Ruabon to Erbistock road unless they are driving something heavy duty to get up the hill.”

10:46 Thanks to Sue McGrane for sending in this great pic of Summerhill earlier this morning.

10:41 For all those concerned about Wrexham FC’s ‘Beast’ Mark Creighton being able to get to Wembley he has just tweeted to say he’s going to make it after 3 hours touring North Wales!

10:32 Lots of complaints about due to the lack of gritters last night. For the record we were on the A483 last night and did seem some. Last time we did snow updates we were told that grit needs cars over it to make it work, so overnight gritting is pretty rubbish.

10:25 We reported earlier that Tan-y-fron had been particularly badly hit by the snow, and we can now put a measurement on this thanks to Leah Baines’ (@Leahtmbaines) photo! We make it 23-24cm up there.

10:14 Thanks to Jim Steele who has sent us this video of Kingsmills Rd this morning, showing traffic crawling along towards the Green Dragon:

10:13 A483 Wrexham bypass update, Northbound is passable with care however southbound is gridlock still, this is an earlier view, and we have someone kindly walking over the Pandy bridge right now for an update soon:

10:04 The British Red Cross have said “Our emergency response volunteers in Wrexham are also helping to transport hospital staff into work to avoid disruption to services”

10:00 Sam Evans reports more snow, and dangers out there saying “Just moved car off drive. Ice seems to be forming under snow. Roads terrible here in Tanyfron. More snow falling now.”

09:52 More on trains, Virgin say No trains between Llandudno Junction and Chester until further notice and Callum says hes travelling between Aberystwyth and Rhiwabon and the train between Shrews and Rhiwabon is cancelled !

09:49 Eleanor has sent the below picture saying “Some cars abandoned, some trying to get up Rhosddu rd. Lorry has been there over an hour now”

09:47 Wrexham Football Club say they still intend to travel down today ahead of their game on Sunday at Wembley.

09:45 Wrexham Job Centre are saying they have a ‘very limited service today’ and “signing will go through automatically and appointments rearranged due to snow!”

09:40 JB has updated again from Garden Village saying “Traffic has now started moving freely in both directions on Chester road although all side roads remain treacherous. The pharmacy in garden village has one pharmacist in but no other staff as yet however they say your prescriptions will be dispensed if you need them but request people try to get there as early as possible.”

09:30 A look forward now to the rest of the day, which has more precipitation later on his afternoon. Below shows the red band of snow that has passed over, with another band heading from the south west. It is likely this will turn to snow as and when it hits Wrexham, which is due to be around 3pm for a few hours.

09:22 The Council are now saying ‘Waterworld Leisure Centre have now taken the decision to open today’. We will try and find out if there will be icebergs in the pool…

09:20 Wayne who is on the bypass has sent us this first picture of the jackknifed lorry that has caused problems this morning, complete with Wayne’s cold hand. He says “A483, south bound co op lorry has jack knifed near coedpoeth, do not attempt to travel down that road!”:

09:15 Power cut reported in Caia Park.

09:12 Perhaps unsurprisingly Wrexham Council have said all libraries and leisure centres are closed due to the dodgy weather.

09:10 Wrexham Football Club have ‘instagramed’ this picture of Mold Road and the ground. The team is due to travel down towards Wembley today, however as we updated earlier, some players are finding it tricky to get out of their houses!

09:07 Simon sent this picture of a lorry stuck on a roundabout in Gwersyllt being towed off:

09:05 Simon Hall says ‘Ruthin road blocked by at least 3 lorrys going up to coedpoeth and also a tree down’, with Sarah Saunders saying ‘two big lorries stuck on Ruabon Road’.

09:00 Wrexham Council have redeployed bin collection staff to deal with snow so there will be no collections today.

08:59 @Chillyed on twitter sent this picture from cars in Tanyfron, we will not repeat what he called the drivers!

08:54 Deiniol Williams sent us this picture saying ‘Cars being abandoned trying to get up Wheatsheaf Lane, and also on an un-gritted Mold Road”

08:50 Nigel has been in touch to say telephone lines are down across the road in Rhosnesni Lane.

08:45 Calon FM DJ Steve Breeze has sent us this picture of , as he says, Wrexham’s rush hour this morning by Tesco:

08:39 As we post that we are told several large branches fallen on Plas Buckley Road, Bersham. Road only passable to serious 4x4s! Also Glyn ceiriog main road is currently closed due to fallen tree, and a tree is down on Marford Hill.

08:38 We have seen several people mention creaking trees and concern that either lots of snow or a branch will fall off, however Lewis Shaw has posted up a picture of his conservatory roof that has caved in due to the snow in Pen-Y-Bryn! He tells us hes ok, as is everyone else and his dogs, thankfully:

08:32 Sebastian has sent us some pictures, including this one of Bellevue Park giving an indication of the snowfall in town:

08:24 Arriva have said no buses will operate today. “Due to worsening conditions, drivers having trouble reaching the depot and buses being unable to leave the depot, we’re sorry to announce that NO WREXHAM SERVICES WILL OPERATE FOR THE REST OF THE DAY as the depot has been closed. We apologise for the inconvenience that this may cause, but we are unable to run. The situation will be assessed and hopefully we will be able to run tomorrow.
Wrexham services 1,3,4,7,8,10,11,12,13,14,21,26,27 are not operating and will not be operating for the remainder of the day.”

08:23 Christian kindly says “Wrexham .com have made themselves essential viewing this morning, how the world changes so quickly, never heard of them last winter.” We have pointed out we have not been running properly for 12 months yet – birthday in May! We would like to invite new readers this morning to remember to check Wrexham.com for local news, to email us with their local stories and to check our our Wrexham Forums by clicking here and get involved! Enough shameless self promotion…on with the updates…

08:20 Ysgol Bodhyfryd is CLOSED as per their own website, but it is not currently listed on the Councils site.

08:17 54 schools now closed – the list is here on the now working Council site. If your school is not listed it may still be affected as there were issues with updating the site earlier.

08:15 Confirmation-ish of what we posted earlier regarding Glyndwr Uni closing as well, Katie told us “The Vice Principle announced it whilst my friend was on the phone to them :)”. We had heard from several people they had been told not to bother going in.

08:11 You might recall earlier updates about the bypass, here is the latest from Rhianedd Preece who says shes now been stuck for two hours :

08:08 North Wales Police are making it clear if your journey is not important, don’t travel. Road conditions are poor. They also tweeted this accident they attended up on the A55 around 40 minutes ago:

08:05 ‘Dan’ has said that Chester has a light dusting and is incomparable to Wrexham. It seems Wrexham is therefore the epicentre of SNOWMAGEDDON. There. We said it.

08:01 Wrexham Council’s website has sprung back into life, and the school updates are here showing 33 schools closed. This is NOT a definitive list as of yet as we are aware of school staff who have been having trouble updating the system.

08:00 David King says “A525 between marchwiel and Hightown blocked. No traffic into Wrexham”.

07:56 Hearing a gritter has broken down towards the industrial estate as its plough has come off, plus the bypass is not moving in parts due to the lorry mentioned below. One person stuck there for 40mins so far this morning.

07:55 Gwyn Edwards has sent this picture “lorry stuck at roundabout crossing Ruabon road & Bradley/fairy road”

07:55 Sam has tweeted this pic saying “A483 just after B&Q fly over lorry jack knifed heavy delays”:

07:51 Sarah says “A huge lorry stuck on Chester road hill garden village causing back log into by pass”. On the plus side we hear Rhosddu spar is still open!

07:48 Just to confirm All Saints Primary School is CLOSED today as well.

07:46 Ysgol Sant Dunawd in Bangor on Dee is CLOSED. We are getting and trying to relay info direct from schools due to issues with the Council site.

07:40 Hearing Glyndwr is closed… still nothing on their official site / twitter / facebooks etc.

07:30 We are still having issues with the site being overloaded with readers – you wouldnt believe we have upgraded several times over the last few months to cope with demand as well!

07:22 Wrexham FC are at Wembley on Sunday, and defender Mark Creighton is due to be with the squad going down today however has said “Cant even get out my estate!!!! Fuming!!!! No wembley trip for me”

07:16 Graham Edwards has his priorties sorted for today, offering this top tip: “for all the people with no sky satellite signal. Brush the white stuff (snow) of it and it’ll work fine again”

07:14 Morgan Llwyd is closed, as is Johnstown Jnrs and Acton Park.

07:13 For the techies out there the Wrexham.com servers have completed fsck’s and are back ! Council’s site is still dead at the moment.

07:11 Reports that cars are stuck on Mold Rd and people are digging themselves out. Paul Booth says “A483 Oswestry bound- total standstill up to Ruthin junction. Chester bound treacherous but moving at 20mph max”

07:10 Alexandra School is closed.

07:08 Darland School is closed.

07:07 Chris Eccleston sent us this picture of the situation by the B&Q roundabout with several lorries trying to get through:

07:05 We join the Council’s website in crashing – however did spot Alun School in Mold saying “Ski trip due to leave as planned” !

07:00 Mike Edwards says “cars piling up on the main road from Marchweil to Wrexham road blocked both ways at kingsmill junction”.

06:59 Black lane in pentre broughton is also closed today.

06:58 Arriva Buses have updated saying “1,3,4,7,8,10,11,12,13,14,21,26,27 not operating until further notice.”

06:53 Yale College is closed today.

06:51 Eyton , Penygelli, Park in Llay and Borras Park Junior School all join the list of closed schools.

06:50 Nothing yet from Yale or Glyndwr on if they are opening, however Deeside College have said all their sites will be closed today. Ysgol Clywedog is also now closed.

06:47 George has just sent us this picture of Gutter Hill in Rhos, with Sam telling us “No road clearing with snow generally 6 inches deep with 12 inch deep drifting here in Tanyfron”.

06:43 Froncysyllte CP closed, not just due to the snow but power issues as well due to the snow. Garth CP closed as well now along with Barker’s Lane & St Josephs.

06:37 We have had a trawl of media outlets, and there is no news so far on official sites. The only two sites currently updating (although not as good as ours if we say so ourselves!) is the Council’s school update page here and Heart FM’s breakfast show facebook page. The latter describes Wrexham Council as ‘disgusting’ saying “Wrexham Council have not even gritted main roads.Disgusting.”

06:36 Cars have been abandoned on Ruthin Rd by Morrisons, with one person telling us that there has been a collision as a lorry slid into one.

06:33 Borderbrook School, Ysgol Min y Ddol , Ysgol Bryn Tabor, St Mary’s Ruabon, Ysgol Maes y Llan Ruabon & St Giles all added to the list of closed schools.

Trees are also reported to have come down on the Llangollen to Chirk road – A5 that is.

06:30 Snow update stalwart ‘JB’ from Garden Village has sent us this picture of how Chester Rd is right now, and its not looking too good. He says “Still heavy flurries coming down, roads very quiet, I still advise you leave early for work if you have to drive take it easy and drive carefully, the gritters have been through numerous times since last night, but it soon covers over again. Drive only if you feel confident and it’s absolutely necessary. Happy snow day everyone, and remember to wrap up , stay safe and have fun. Don’t forget to check on elderly or disabled neighbours, in case they need anything and make sure they’re nice and warm.”

06:25 Rhianedd Preece sent this picture of the A483 bypass close to the B&Q Roundabout:

06:23 Six schools closed now, Dinas Bran, Acrefair, Bryn Alyn, Maelor School, Ysgol y Grango & Rhiwabon.

06:17 Kyle Coppack just sent us this picture of a lorry stuck on Mold Rd opposite Glyndwr Uni:

06:15 Bryn Alyn High School, Gwersyllt is CLOSED today as will The Maelor School Penley be. GHA Coaches are saying “At present, no local buses or GHA school services are able to operate in the Wrexham area. Please do not attempt to travel.”

06:10 Morning! Lot of snow about. A5 between Llangollen & Corwen closed by police as power lines and fallen trees blocking road. Lindsey Morris sent us this pic of Ponciau just now:

Helena Parker sent us this picture saying “The gritters have done this road about 6 times tonight and it’s still covered”.

Bevan20050 sent us this picture of the snowfall close to Morrisons just after midnight:

Several people tweeted us updates from various areas such as the following:

@wrexham Absolute blizzard up here in Llandegla. Fierce wind blowing loads of snow in. Stay safe&look after each other.

— Michael Griffiths (@MikeGriffithsMG) March 21, 2013

Coedpoeth and minera already under a few cms of snow and a complete whiteout @wrexham . Not cool

— Steph McIver (@mciveronice) March 21, 2013

https://twitter.com/pmsumner/status/314883263057510401

We will be updating this page with Wrexham Snow Updates – please email us on [email protected] , tweet @wrexham or post on our forums with updates and we will collate them on here!