Businesses and governments across the Channel Islands are making preparations ahead of forecast snow.
A blast of cold air from Russia, dubbed ‘the beast from the east’, is pushing snow showers towards the British Isles, with a good chance of coverage across the islands over the next few days.
The first light snow showers hit Alderney and Guernsey on Monday afternoon.
Police forces say they will continuously assess road safety conditions and will regularly issue information to local media. Advice is likely to focus on road conditions and may suggest that only essential journeys should be considered.
When it comes to schools, they say that while every effort will be made to open all accessible schools, there may be some which cannot open due to unsafe access, issues with the facilities such as burst water pipes or heating system failures, or insufficient staffing levels.
When it comes to travel, Guernsey Airport say they will make every effort to plan for and deal with snow and ice contamination, adding that snow and ice on the airport can inevitably introduce potential hazards to aircraft operations and to apron activities.
Jersey Airport say they have contingency plans in place, including de-icing of runway, stands and aircraft as well as public footpaths, which will be implemented should the need arise.
Richard Plaster from Law At Work says both employers and employees have responsibilities when it comes to making arrangements if snow makes it difficult to get to work.
He said: “In general terms where an employee is unable to get into work they are normally required to either take holidays or make up the time. Where practicable, some employees are able to work at home, but naturally this is not available or possible in all roles.”
“You should try to take all reasonable steps to get into work. Naturally, you should not take unnecessary risks, and individuals have to use their own judgment on whether it is safe to attempt to get to work.”
You can read the full Q&A guide he wrote for Business Eye CI earlier this year here.
The governments of Jersey and Guernsey are pledging to keep people updated with key information across their social media channels, as will Jersey Police and Guernsey Police.
The States of Guernsey have set up a special site to collate information in one place which you can see here.
You can get the very latest forecast for the Channel Islands here.
