Dense Fog Over Europe

Northern Advocate, 29 November 1948, Page 5

Dense Fog Over Europe

LONDON, Sun. (II a.m.;—A dense fog, which covered many parts of Britain and the Continent yesterday, was today thicker than ever on the east Yorkshire coast. There was a general improvement in the London area, however, and transport services there were back to normal. Many districts on the south and east coasts continue to report frqak conditions, in which dense fog and brilliant sunshine alternate. The firso ceatn due to fog was that of a woman who fell into the Thames on her way home and was drowned early this morning. Her cries for Help were heard by a man, who dived into the river, but the woman was dead when brought to the bank. The Norwegian cargo ship Lysaker IV, of 1551 tons, and a British trawler were damaged in a collision in dense fog on the River Humber last night. Air and land traffic in France was considerably hampered today by thick fog, which blanketed Paris and several other important cities until noon.

AT STANDSTILL Early tonight the fog blotted out nearly the whole of England. Train services were delayed, road traffic brought almost to a standstill, air services cancelled or directed to the few fog-free airports, and motorists warned that conditions in many areas were “highly dangerous.” It was the thickest night in the Channpl for many years, but by using radar, cross-Channel boats early in the night were able tc dock practically on time. However, in the Straits of Dover there were no shipping movements at all. and vessels were massed in the Thames Estuary and off the Essex coast.

In contrast, Aberdeen and the north of Scotland enjoyed a week-end of mild, clear weather with spells of sunshine.

Northern Europe also had the heaviest fog for years, which tied up shipping from the Baltic to the English Channel, grounded 'airliners, and disrupted road traffic. There were several ship collisions in the Baltic.