Snow blizzard strikes early: Winter is going to be tough for expats

I found myself doing something yesterday I never expected to do this early in the season. Reluctantly cranking up the heating as snow fell past my London window. It didn’t stick, but the fact that we’re seeing snow this early in November feels distinctly unusual.

After 20 years in the UK, you develop a sense for these things. This isn’t normal.

Blizzard warnings in force

The Met Office has issued an amber warning for the North East today, with blizzard conditions expected as frequent wintry showers blow in from the North Sea.

The North Yorkshire Moors and Yorkshire Wolds could see 15 to 25cm of accumulated snow by tonight, with gusty winds creating what forecasters are calling “occasional blizzard conditions.”

Rural communities might be cut off. Power cuts are possible. Roads are already turning into ice rinks as overnight temperatures plummet.

Good luck to the Saffas living in the north.

Temperatures dropping to -12C

Multiple yellow warnings remain in force across Scotland, Northern Ireland, East Anglia, Lincolnshire, Devon, Cornwall and parts of South Wales.

But it’s the forecast for Scotland that’s particularly grim. Temperatures could drop to -12 degrees Celsius in areas with lying snow by Friday.

For context, that’s colder than your average Cape Town winter by a factor of about 10 degrees.

Are we in for a long one?

What concerns me is the timing. Winter doesn’t usually bite this hard until December or January. Getting snow in London this early, watching the North East disappear under blizzards in November, suggests we might be in for a tougher and longer winter than we’ve seen in years.

So if you’re an expat still on the fence about turning on the heating, trust me. Just do it now. Your energy bill will thank you less than your fingers will.

And if you’re reading this from sunny Joburg wondering what all the fuss is about, just remember we chose this.