A quad bike will help grit areas by the hospital, Covid-19 testing sites and vaccination centres in Southend, as Essex braces itself for heavy snow this weekend.

The speedy vehicle, accompanied by a trailer, is set to cover these key areas after the Met Office issued an amber weather warning for the county in anticipation of snow.

It's been suggested there could be up to 20cm in parts of Essex, along with other parts of eastern England.

In response to the warning, Southend Council says gritters will be out this weekend and 122 salt bins stand ready to be used across the borough.

There is also more than 1,500 tonnes of salt in reserve.

Veolia – who are in charge of the operation - are set to use small gritting vehicles to keep miles of pavements and walkways safe across Southend.

Read more:

Gritting operation planned for Southend as Met Office warns of 20cm of snow

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