Snow caused travel disruptions across central England and northern Wales on Sunday, grounding flights, shutting down roads and triggering traffic accidents.
A man walks past a snow covered phone box in Marlow, England, after heavy snow fell across parts of the UK, Sunday Dec. 10, 2017. Snow is causing travel disruptions across central England and northern Wales, grounding some flights and shutting down roads. (Steve Parsons/PA via AP)
Birmingham, London Stansted and London Luton airports briefly suspended flights as runways were cleared. The airports advised passengers to contact their airlines to check the status of flights.
Heathrow Airport just outside London, the busiest airport in Europe, expressed regret that weather conditions in the U.K. resulted in disruptions for passengers.
A car negotiates its way through hazardous road conditions in Canterbury, England, after heavy snow fell across parts of the UK, Sunday Dec. 10, 2017. Snow and freezing weather is causing travel disruptions across central England and northern Wales, grounding some flights and shutting down roads. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)
"Airlines are responsible for ensuring their flights are fully de-iced before they are operated, and this is resulting in some delays and cancellations," the airport said in a statement posted on Twitter.
Airports worked through the early evening to clear the backlog of flights. But in the world of interconnected air travel, the effects of any extended disruptions can persist for hours, with planes and flight crews quickly knocked out of rotation for their next assignments.
Weather-related troubles were also evident on U.K. roadways. Police advised people to stay home unless travel was critical.
People brave the cold as snow continues to fall near Castleton, England, Saturday Doc. 9, 2017, as widespread disruption is expected across large parts of the UK. Forecasters are warning that some communities could be cut off as temperatures plummet and heavy snow settles on the region. (John Giles/PA via AP)
The M1 motorway — the main highway between London and northeast England — was partially closed in Leicestershire.
Police in Wales warned against all but the most essential travel amid persistent snowfall that was forecast to last throughout Sunday. Strong winds slammed the Welsh coast.
The Met Office warned of wind and rain for London and southern England, with gusts of up to 70 mph (110 kph) predicted.
Snow covers Ironbridge, England, Sunday Dec. 10, 2017, as heavy snow falls across parts of Britain. Snow is causing travel disruptions across central England and northern Wales, grounding flights, shutting down roads and causing traffic accidents. (Nick Potts/PA via AP)
LONDON (AP) — Prince William returns to public duties on Thursday for the first time since his wife’s cancer diagnosis, bolstering the royal family’s ranks as health problems continue to sideline the princess and King Charles III.
William is set to visit a surplus food redistribution center and a youth club it serves, highlighting efforts to reduce food waste as a way to cut greenhouse gas emissions and feed people in need. The prince stepped away from public duties after Kate, the Princess of Wales, announced on March 22 that she was undergoing treatment for an unspecified type of cancer.
In a video message released that day, Kate asked for “time, space and privacy” as she and her family adjusted to her diagnosis.
“I have been doing everything we can to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family,” she said at the time.
“It has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that is appropriate for them, and to reassure them that I am going to be okay,” she added.
Both Charles and Kate have been largely absent from the public stage since January due to health problems, leaving Queen Camilla, Princess Anne and other members of the royal family to pick up the slack on the whirl of events and awards ceremonies that dominate the work of Britain’s monarchy.
Charles announced on Feb. 5 that he had been diagnosed with an undisclosed type of cancer following treatment for an enlarged prostate two weeks earlier. Kate’s diagnosis came after she was hospitalized in late January for unspecified abdominal surgery.
William is set to visit a surplus food distribution charity — Surplus to Supper — in Surrey, southwest of London, where he will lend a hand in the kitchen and help load prepared meals into delivery vans. He will then travel to a youth center in west London that benefits from the food deliveries.
Britain's Prince William is greeted as he arrives for a visit to Surplus to Supper, in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, England, Thursday, April 18, 2024. The Prince visited Surplus to Supper, a surplus food redistribution charity, to learn about its work bridging the gap between food waste and food poverty across Surrey and West London. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, pool)
Britain's Prince William is shown items by Claire Hopkins, Operations Director, right, during a visit to Surplus to Supper, in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, England, Thursday, April 18, 2024. The Prince visited Surplus to Supper, a surplus food redistribution charity, to learn about its work bridging the gap between food waste and food poverty across Surrey and West London. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, pool)
Britain's Prince William is greeted as he arrives for a visit to Surplus to Supper, in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, England, Thursday, April 18, 2024. The Prince visited Surplus to Supper, a surplus food redistribution charity, to learn about its work bridging the gap between food waste and food poverty across Surrey and West London. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, pool)
FILE - Prince William arrives to attend the annual Commonwealth Day Service of Celebration at Westminster Abbey in London, on March 11, 2024. Prince William is returning to public duties for the first time since his wife’s cancer diagnosis. He will be bolstering the royal family’s ranks as health problems continue to sideline the Princess of Wales and King Charles III. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)
