Who's dreaming of a white Christmas? by Kirsty McCabe
Tourists dreaming of a white Christmas in Bethlehem were thoroughly disappointed. More than 30,000 people travelled to Jesus’ birthplace, double the figure of last year, but instead of waking up to a blanket of snow, the visitors were greeted with heavy rain and hail. Snow was restricted to just the higher ground, on Mount Hermon where up to a metre was recorded.
Meanwhile heavy snowfall caused severe disruption to Christmas travellers in parts of Japan. Some of the heaviest snowfall on record for December has hit parts of the islands since last week, even in the south where snow is relatively rare. Luckily the capital, Tokyo, has been spared. However, in the western prefecture of Fukui more than two metres of snow fell, causing a factory building to collapse, and leaving thousands of residents without electricity this Christmas.
Back home in the UK, it is white stuff of a different variety that has caused problems for the festive travellers. Dense fog patches plagued western parts of the UK, causing accidents and long delays on the roads.
However, there is snow on the way for the UK. Eastern parts look set to receive some heavy snow showers on Tuesday and Wednesday next week. In fact, the Met Office has a severe weather warning in force for heavy snow during these days, so if you are planning to travel home from the Christmas holidays at this time, keep in touch with the forecast on Ceefax or online.
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