IT WAS snow go in Dorset yesterday as a fierce Arctic blizzard whipped in bringing chaos to the region for a fourth day running.

Main routes were disabled and railway signals froze as temperatures plummeted to minus four degrees and up to eight inches of snow fell in some areas.

Emergency services said they were some of the worst conditions they had experienced.

Motorists who did venture out yesterday once again faced gruelling journeys with sheet ice and deep snow blocking roads, jackknifing lorries and cars in ditches. There were no reports of serious accidents but hundreds were trapped in drifts and abandoned cars littered many roads.

The Portland Coastguard helicopter battled to get over the Ridgeway for an emergency transfer of a seven year-old girl from Dorset County Hospital to Southampton.

Blizzards forced the aircraft to turn back but it made it to the hospital in the afternoon.

On the roads it was routes around Dorchester that were the worst affected. Around 100 cars became stuck on the blizzard-hit A35 Puddletown Bypass. At least 10 vehicles were left by the side of the road by their owners.

PC Simon Fairholme of the road policing unit told how he and colleagues were alerted to dig vehicles out of deep snow on the bypass.

He said: “The conditions were extreme. Many people didn’t heed advice to stay at home and only journey if absolutely necessary.”

The A354 between Dorchester and Weymouth was closed for more than three hours and west of Dorchester was also treacherous.

Other major routes which had to close included the A37 Dorchester to Yeovil road, and the A35 Bere Regis to Bakers Arms.

Weymouth got more rain than snow but this added to problems by washing grit from the roads and quickly freezing.

A host of community facilities were closed while Dorset County Hospital bosses cancelled outpatient appointments and non-emergency surgery.

“We have had a lot of help from Wessex 4x4 Response.”

South Western Ambulance cancelled non-urgent patient services so paramedics could focus on life-threatening emergencies.

Chief executive Ken Wenman said: “Staff did a magnificent job of reaching patients calling for help, in what can only be described as some of the most treacherous driving conditions faced by the service.”

Police urged drivers to stay off the road and pleaded with people not to jam phone lines with things like ‘snowballs are being thrown.’ The railways were also thrown into chaos. South West Trains ran a reduced service on the Weymouth-Waterloo line and some morning trains were disrupted due to frozen points and signals.

Weymouth-bound passengers were held up for more than an hour at Moreton while engineers worked on damaged signals.

Commuter Sam Childs of Rodwell explained how he got on a train at Weymouth which had returned from up the line after not being able to climb the incline at Bincombe.

Mr Childs, 29, who works for a publishing company in Dorchester, said: “An announcement said the train had come back because it didn’t make it up the icy bank out of Upwey. Lots of delayed commuters boarded and the driver took off at full speed, with this attempt proving successful.”

He added: “I made it to work but my colleagues weren’t so fortunate – most of them were hours late or absent completely.

“People say that it’s unusual weather for this area, hence the lack of preparation on the roads, but it’s been like this three winters in a row.

“Surely now we should have the infrastructure to prevent such chaos? South West Trains planned to run a reduced service today due to the temperatures forecast.

Anti-icing trains ran during the night followed by ‘ghost trains’ to help keep the network clear of ice on the conductor rail.

Explaining the reason to run a reduced timetable today, managing director of South West Trains Andy Pitt said: “We want to give our passengers certainty in terms of when and how they are going to get to their destination, and to ensure our trains and crews are best placed to deliver a reliable timetable.”

Bus company First kept its services to main roads.