Ice melting away as city warms after big freeze

Edinburgh experienced a long awaited thaw yesterday , as the persistent lying snow and compacted ice turned to slush and in many places disappeared.

However, the higher temperatures will present new problems with slush on the roads turning to ice overnight, more potholes, a threat of flooding and burst pipes.

The thaw was expected to continue throughout today and into Tuesday, with the Met Office predicting temperatures of around 3C for the rest of today and during the day tomorrow.

However there remains the possibility of some light snow throughout the week, and temperatures are expected to drop again on Wednesday, although they are not expected to be anywhere near as cold as the -10C experienced last week. Minimum temperatures this week are expected to be -3C.

The weather is still affecting train services with an hourly Edinburgh to Bathgate service and half-hourly service running between Edinburgh and Glasgow.

The majority of the Capital's schools and nurseries were due to open as normal today.

But any pre-planned closures made on Friday were to remain, including this morning's session at Lochrin Nursery School and the nursery classes at Flora Stevenson and Buckstone.

The situation for nursery and P4 to P7 at Buckstone Primary pupils was to be reviewed early this morning, along with sessions at Corstorphine Nursery. S1 pupils at Balerno High School are due to return on Thursday.

Emergency services were still busy with weather-related problems throughout the weekend.

On Saturday, crews had to rescue a 15 stone Great Dane called Hector from the icy Water of Leith.

Firefighters in immersion suits broke their way through the ice while secured to land by rope and helped the dog towards the bank where he was heaved from the water to safety.

Four fire engines attended the rescue at Redbraes Grove, one from MacDonald Road, one from Crewe Toll, and two from the Marionville station.

The incident took place at around 10am, and after being safely returned to his owners, Hector was taken to his vet for precautionary checks.

The cold and snowy conditions continued to cause uncertainty for travellers and commuters.

Edinburgh Airport was open and fully operational yesterday with most flights leaving on time, although BAA are continuing to warn travellers to check flight information before they travel due to conditions elsewhere.

All lower league sporting fixtures were cancelled over the weekend.

The only sporting events that went ahead were the Hibs v Irvine Meadow football Scottish Cup qualifier at Easter Road, and the Edinburgh v Cardiff rugby Magners League game at Murrayfield.

Musselburgh Racecourse remained closed, making it over a month since the last race took place on 7 December.

But the heavy snow wasn't bad news for everybody.

Motorists in Edinburgh have been enjoying a free parking bonanza with the city's "blue meanies" being confounded by obscured car windows and road markings, making it impossible to check for valid parking tickets.

One city parking attendant reportedly said: "If we can't see inside a vehicle because it's covered in ice or snow then we won't issue a ticket.

"We're also restricted from fining cars on streets where the road markings are obscured.

"There are thousands of cars across the city in this position but what can we do? It's having a massive impact on the number of fines being dished out."

House roof collapses under weight of snow

HEAVY snow caused the roof of a house in Midlothian to collapse.

Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue service were called out after the roof of a house in Woodcote Park, Pathhead, Midlothian began collapsing under the weight of the snow.

When fire fighters arrived shortly before midnight on Saturday night, they found the two people who were in the house had escaped safely, but the building was said to be in a dangerous state.

About an hour before, firefighters had been sent to Smailholm Mains Farm in Smailholm, near Kelso, in the Borders. The roof of a shed housing a number of sheep had collapsed. However, the animals managed to escape from the building and the firefighters helped the farmer take them to another part of the farm.

Grit boss: we weren't caught out

By Chris Marshall

THE former Scotland rugby hero in charge of the Capital's gritting operation today insisted the city had not been "caught on the hop" by the big freeze.

Euan Kennedy – who scored against England on the way to Scotland's Grand Slam success in 1984 – said he was aware of the "upset" caused

but said keeping the main roads open was a significant achievement.

Edinburgh was forced to borrow 100 tonnes of salt from Highland Council last week, he revealed.

Mr Kennedy, the council's road services manager, praised the "bulldog spirit" which saw locals in Portobello join together at the weekend to grit footpaths in the area.

However, he said other residents had been guilty of hoarding grit supplies, citing an example where a man emptied an entire grit bin to de-ice his driveway.

He said: "I have been in the council for 30 years, with responsibility for gritting for 20 years, and I have never known weather like this.

"We've had 18 different snow events since the snow first began to fall and our guys have been out 24/7 doing their part."

The council was short of grit supplies last week and made a plea to the Scottish Government and deliveries totalling around 1,200 tonnes, were received by the city over the weekend.

Mr Kennedy said: "We have kept the main road network open and that's been a major achievement.

"We were definitely not caught on the hop – we were prepared for what was coming. I don't feel that apologies are due, even though I understand the frustration that some people feel.

"I've got a pretty thick skin after years of doing this job. People are upset, but I can't say I have been stung by the criticism."

Edinburgh has now used around 5,500 tonnes of salt in a three-week period, compared with 6,000 tonnes between November and March last year.

Around 250 council workers have now been redeployed to cope with the winter effort, as well as private contractors being drafted in to help make roads passable and pavements safe.

Bin men who refused to go to work on Thursday due to health and safety fears also returned to work as normal on Friday.

The council said staff were now prioritising school crossings, pedestrian crossings and sheltered housing complexes.

But Councillor Andrew Burns, leader of the Labour group on the council,

said: "Whilst I obviously welcome the increase in staffing, this late implementation is just yet another example of the incompetence of the SNP/Lib Dem council administration.

"Frankly, Contingency measures to ensure staff were available when need was greatest – over the holiday period – should have been in place."

But city leader Jenny Dawe accused Cllr Burns of being "particularly ill-informed and unhelpful".