Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/440087
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 31 DECEMBER 2014 Brrr – 'coldest December day since 1988' predicted TIM DIACONO THE Meteorological Office predicts that to- day's temperature will drop to a minimum of 4˚C, making it the coldest Maltese December day in 26 years. The last time December temperatures dipped below 4˚C was in 1988, when the temperature plunged to 3.7˚C. The cascading mercury follows the heavy rain, hail and thunder that battered Malta overnight up to yesterday morning, flooding several areas. Gozo was hit with a particularly severe hail- storm, blanketing parts of the island with so much hail that they appeared to have been struck by a snowstorm. Indeed, some Gozitan children took advantage of the situation to construct miniature ice 'snowmen'. At around 7:10am yesterday, a woman who was out walking on the notoriously flood- prone Valley Road, Msida, ended up stuck in the road's ensuing flooding and had to hold onto a metal bar affixed to the ground while using her other hand to call 112 on her mobile phone. A car being driven down Valley Road, Birkirkara, ended up stuck in a gutter when the metal grating was dislodged, and the Civil Pro- tection Department had to rush to the scene to rescue the motorist and his passenger. Severe floods were also reported near Chad- wick Lakes, Kennedy Grove and the Telgha t'Alla u Ommu hill in Maghtab. A manhole was reportedly uncovered in Lija and a skid- ding car reportedly closed part of the downhill between Mosta and Burmarrad. Strong waves smashed into the coast, wetting pavements and streets in Sliema. The Met Office explained that a spell of cold weather is reaching the Mediterranean from Russia and Scandinavia, where snow is copi- ous. The Nadur 'weather station' posted data last night that the temperature actually slipped be- low zero for a brief moment, dropping to -0.6˚C. Although temperatures below 0˚C could theo- retically lead to snow, Malta is surrounded by sea whose temperature is not predicted to dip below 15˚C, making a snowy Malta very un- likely. PHOTOGRAPHY BY RAY ATTARD