Snow causes church cancellations

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About 100 church services have been cancelled in Cornwall because of the continuing wintry weather.

Described as unprecedented, one minister said the decisions to cancel services have been made mainly on health and safety grounds.

Many pavements and side roads remain treacherous, with compacted snow and ice, while fresh snow has been falling across parts of the country.

Motorists are warned to drive with care and take warm clothes with them.

A couple in St Agnes, who have had no running water since Friday, have been told they will need to rely on bottled water until their mains supply thaws.

School access

South West Water said as it was the pipe to the couple's house that was frozen there was nothing it could do.

Cornwall Council said its staff had been working throughout the weekend to maintain essential services.

Highways staff have been closely monitoring conditions and precautionary salting runs were carried out on all the county's A and B roads late on Saturday.

The council said after ensuring the main road network was clear, gangs of workers had been clearing ice and snow from minor roads to provide access into the main towns and villages.

Roads to key sites such as hospitals, fire stations and doctors' surgeries have also been treated.

Some crews have been sent to smaller villages and hamlets across the county to gain access and, where possible, clear routes up to the entrances of schools and colleges to enable as many as possible to open on Monday.