View of grass verge off Valley Drive, Gravesend

Kent Police received 60 per cent more calls over the weekend as snowfall and icy conditions hit north Kent.

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The whole of the country was blanketed on Saturday night with residents waking to up to 15cm in most parts of the county, including Gravesend, Dartford and Swanley.

From 10pm on Saturday through to Sunday the force received more than 450 emergency 999 calls in comparison to the same period last year.

Most routes were salted and gritted in an effort to keep the county moving but minor routes were still hampered.

Southeastern trains experienced some disruption over the weekend and the Met Office issued a ‘yellow’ warning for the county this morning (Monday February 6) as freezing conditions overnight led to black ice.

Today Southeastern are saying they plan to run a normal service although some delays have been reported and Kent Police is advising motorists to take care.

Speaking yesterday Superintendent Martin Very, who has overseen the Kent Police response to the severe weather, said: “I want to thank the public for listening to the early weather warnings and to our messages today about only travelling if it is essential. Although we have had a busy day, we have had very few significant traffic problems and only minor road collisions. Due to the hard work of the many agencies across Kent, most of our major roads are passable with care but if people have to travel please take extra care and allow extra time for your journey.

“Our control room has been very busy and we have received over 450 emergency 999 calls since 10pm last night, which is an increase of over 60% on the same period last week. Many of these calls relate to traffic incidents.

“We have also received a number of calls about anti-social behaviour involving snowball throwing and I would urge parents to speak to their children about enjoying the snow safely. By all means have fun with snowballs, but not if it means you hurt or frighten people or damage their property. Do not throw snowballs at people, vehicles, or people’s homes.

“I would encourage people to keep themselves safe in this weather and to check on elderly and vulnerable neighbours, friends or relatives and make sure they are safe and warm. Thank you to everyone who has helped with clearing snow and ensuring pavements and paths are safe.

“Obviously we are anticipating some icy conditions tonight and tomorrow morning (Monday February 6), so I would ask people to continue to take time to prepare for their journey and keep checking our website for updates on the roads and with bus and train operators for the latest news on services and any delays and cancellations.”

A spokesperson for Southeastern said this morning: “Southeastern services are running normally as of 7am with all routes open.

For more updates visit www.southeasternrailway.co.uk or www.nationalrail.co.uk