Northumberland feels the chill as temperatures fall to -8C

The Met Office weather station at Albemarle, near Stamfordham, recorded a numbingly cold -8C, while the thermometer dropped to -4C at Boulmer on the coast.

Just north of the border at Charterhall, near Berwick, a temperature of -9C was recorded.

The Met Office has a yellow weather warning in place for snow showers and icy surfaces until noon on Friday, December 16.

Temperatures are forecast to remain below freezing in Northumberland for much of today (Tuesday) but will slowly start to rise as the week progresses.

In Berwick, temperatures are forecast to reach a high of -2C today before rising to a maximum of 3C on Wednesday and 4C on Thursday.

In Alnwick, a maximum of -1C is forecast today, rising to 1C on Wednesday and 3C on Thursday.

In Morpeth, a high of 0C is forecast today, rising to 1C on Wednesday and 2C on Thursday.

In Blyth, a top temperature of 0C is forecast today, rising to 1C on Wednesday and 3C on Thursday.

It has prompted a warning from Northumberland County Council for residents to take extreme care on roads and paths over the coming days.

Gritting teams have been working round the clock, focusing on the main routes before moving onto some of the smaller roads.

Gritting teams are also treating priority footways in towns due to the widespread presence of ice and once these key routes are treated, they will work outwards to treat as many of the main pedestrian routes as possible.

With over 5,000kms of road in Northumberland, gritting everywhere is not possible, and drivers are urged to allow extra time for their journeys if they need to travel and leave extra distance for braking.

With road temperatures forecast to go as low as –12 during the night, the effectiveness of the rock salt used for gritting will also be reduced, meaning further diligence is needed if drivers have to go out.

The council has 1,600 grit bins and 200 grit heaps around the county. Grit bins are there for people to use on a self-help basis to grit areas of public roads and footways of concern.

The council will replenish grit bins when it is made aware. People need to log a request via https://www.northumberland.gov.uk/Highways/Winter.aspx

In the current conditions, anyone travelling is also urged to take some basic kit should they get into difficulties – these include warm clothes, a hot drink (flask) and shovel.

Detailed information on council winter services can be found at https://nland.cc/WinterLeaflet