London - An English pub has cancelled a
charity snail race scheduled to take place on Saturday after
unseasonably icy weather made potential competitors too slow to
compete.
"The cold snap has led to a medical problem with our racing
snails - it's called hibernation," the Dartmoor Union Inn in
southwest England said on its Facebook page.
Temperatures across much of Europe are below normal for the
time of year, and British weather forecasters have warned of
bitterly cold winds and snow that could disrupt transport and
cut off rural communities over the coming week.
England's public health authority said on Friday the
prolonged cold weather posed a danger to elderly people and
young children if they could not heat their homes.
The Dartmoor Union Inn said it planned to reschedule what it
had billed as "The 1st International Snail Grand National", in
aid of a local air ambulance service, once the weather warms up.