Motorists urged to take extra care as snow forecast for Norfolk
Covid-19 vaccination centres plan to stay open
Motorists are being urged to take extra care this weekend and only travel if absolutely necessary with snow forecast in the eastern region.
The plea comes at a time when any journey should be for a reasonable excuse under current lockdown rules.
Snowfall earlier in January led to emergency services dealing with a number of collisions, leading to calls for people to avoid travel wherever possible, reducing the need for help from emergency services.
T/Superintendent Nathan Clark is repeating the call ahead of the weekend when further snow is expected.
He said:
"By reducing the number of journeys, we reduce the chance to coming into contact with others through choice or by chance, such as being involved in a collision and needing the help of emergency services.
"Any journey we make under current lockdown rules should be for an essential purpose, such as food shopping or caring for a vulnerable friend or relative. With these weather warnings in place we would ask people to give extra thought before leaving home and ask yourself 'can my journey wait'?"
"Emergency services, particularly our colleagues in the NHS, are stretched with the demands of COVID-19 and we would ask people to play their part in this collective effort and do everything they can not to overburden these services unnecessarily."
Norfolk County County's highways teams will be carrying out essential gritting runs, with extra work being carried out near vaccine centres to keep them accessible.
COVID-19 vaccination sites across Norfolk and Waveney are set to remain open this weekend as plans are underway to prepare for cold weather and significant snowfall across the region.
The NHS is urging people to wrap up warm and travel safely if they have a COVID-19 vaccination appointment booked.
If extreme weather conditions make running vaccination centres unsafe the local NHS will use social media channels, websites and the local media to let people know of any closures or disruption to vaccination services. Please look out for updates and alerts over the weekend and early next week.
Tom McCabe, Chair of the Norfolk Resilience Forum Strategic Coordination Group, said:
"We're expecting heavy snowfall this weekend, and while it is very tempting to get out into fresh snow with friends and family we must remember that we are in a lockdown situation and we should only be going out for essential trips. Anyone who absolutely must leave home needs to be cautious on the roads, plan ahead and keep in line with social distancing guidelines. The pandemic is already making a lot of demands on our emergency services and we must make sure not to create more work for them unnecessarily."
Scott Norman, Assistant Chief Fire Officer, said:
"We would ask people not to leave home unless absolutely essential. If you do venture out on the roads, please be prepared and drive according to the conditions. Like the public, we are only allowed out for essential reasons and each car journey in difficult weather increases the risk to everyone and the likelihood of our crews being required to assist."