A rare cold-health weather alert has been extended across all areas of England by government health chiefs. The UK has experienced some bitterly cold weather of late, with snow and ice impacting much of Scotland, England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
A rare amber cold weather alert was put in place by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), along with the Met Office, earlier this week. The warning, which affects the North East, North West, Yorkshire and the Humber, East Midlands, West Midlands, East of England, London, South East and South West, has now been extended.
The amber alert, which means the weather is “expected to have significant impacts across health and social care services”, is rarely given in the UK. It has now been extended until Tuesday, January 14, at 9am.
Government health bosses have explained the “amber” level means we may see “a rise in deaths, particularly among those aged 65 and over or with health conditions”, as well as a likely increase in demand for health services, and “temperatures inside places like hospitals, care homes, and clinics dropping below the levels recommended for assessing health risks”.
It adds there will likely be “challenges keeping indoor temperatures at the recommended 18C leading to more risk to vulnerable people, staffing issues due to external factors (such as travel delays), and other sectors starting to observe impacts (such as transport and energy)”.