Howe family, Benfleet, build igloo in their back garden

The Howe clan worked as a team to build the igloo using tools, which took them a whopping seven hours. 

They used up all the snow from their garden in the process, with the build finishing at 5ft high by 4ft width.

Last week’s snowfall in south Essex gave mum Caroline, ten-year-old Amy, and eight-year-old Johnny the perfect opportunity to get sculpting their snow home on Elizabeth Way, Benfleet.

Thanks to dad John, who works as a carpenter, the centrepiece of the garden was completed on Thursday, following more snow on Wednesday night.

John, 46, worked through the evening so his children could stay snuggled up in in the warm.

Mrs Howe, 40, said: “There’s enough space in there for us all. 

“It’s about 5ft high and 4ft across. 

“The neighbours probably think we’re crazy.”

“We built it as if we were building a brick wall. 

“We were putting the snow inside the steps, which were hollow, and then taking the steps out. The steps then slid out really easily.

“The kids loved it, but they got too cold and came inside. Luckily John was able to take over after work.”

South Essex saw heavy snowfall last week, with disruption across the roads and trains.

Paul Hubbard, also from Benfleet, managed to draw a Dalek in his back garden before the snow covered it “within an hour.”
Caroline added: “We were all out there in our skiing gear, salopettes and the lot.

“John didn’t know how cold it was so only had his gloves and work clothes on. He then had to take it all off because he couldn’t fit through the entrance.

“He pretended he was going to sleep in there. I think he would have done if we said it might collapse. He might have needed a helping hand at that point.

“We had run out of snow in the garden, we had used it all by the time we had finished.”

Southend seafront also saw heavy snowfall, with some people spotted skiing and snowboarding.
The igloo had remained intact throughout Friday and into the weekend, with temperatures remaining low.