A climber has died after plunging 230ft from a ridge in the Lake District in front of horrified fell walkers.
Keswick Mountain Rescue announced online their first callout of the year had ended in tragedy after the man died after falling from Sharp Edge on Blencathra on January 2 at around 12.25pm.
The rescuers were assisted by the Great North Air Ambulance Service, Coastguard Helicopter R199, and the police to help recover the body and airlift it back to Keswick MR Base in Cumbria.
‘Our thoughts and condolences go to the man’s family and friends,’ the team wrote on Facebook.
Sharp Edge is a ridge leading to the top of the 868m-high Blencathra mountain. On Thursday temperatures in the area dropped as low as two degrees.
The route is described as ‘strenuous’ on the Cumbria Tourism website, which warns: ‘Its lofty position and fine sculpted crest have the capacity to excite even the most jaded scrambler. But it also has the capacity to scare some people.’
The exposed ridge with vertical drops on either side is only a couple of hundred meters long and is the narrowest ridge in the Lake District that can be traversed by a walker.
The Met Office has issued four yellow snow warnings and two amber warnings for today
This comes as the Met Office issued new warning maps showing which areas will be hit the hardest by heavy snow and temperatures of -10C, as major cities ‘activate’ emergency plans.
Stranded vehicles on the roads, delayed or cancelled rail and air travel and power cuts are all likely as the country grapples with a week-long spell of wintry conditions, the Met Office said.
There is also a ‘good chance’ that rural communities could be cut off thanks to the weather, with up to 30cm of snowfall expected in some areas.
A Met Office spokesperson confirmed the temperatures reached a low of -8.6C in Aboyne in Aberdeenshire overnight.
People out walking at the Wicklow Gap mountain pass in Co Wicklow
The first amber snow and ice warning for Wales and the Midlands states that ‘snow and freezing rain will likely lead to disruption to transport and some other services’. Pictured: Richmond
A hard frost turns Stonehenge white at dawn in Wiltshire on Friday morning amid sub-zero weather
Chilly conditions were expected to continue for most of Saturday, today with most places ranging from 2-5C, with highs of 7C in south-west England. The coldest temperature recorded in January last year was minus 14C, in Dalwhinnie in the Highlands.
The Met Office has warned that up to 1ft 4in (40cm) of snow could blanket parts of the UK.
The forecaster put in place a yellow snow warning for most of England and the whole of Wales from 12pm today until 11.59pm on Sunday, while Northern areas of Scotland have yellow warnings until 10am tomorrow.