15 March 1947    Blizzard Hits Fochriw   Fochriw has experienced the blizzard in all its severity during the past week. Fochriw was cut off from road, rail and postal services for many days. Trains are trapped in deep drifts. Many men have been employed in clearing roads. Inhabitants have had to tramp over high drifts for their bread etc.

6 December 1952    The Snow   Fochriw and district had a considerable fall of snow last week. Large snow-drifts curtailed traffic and buses failed to run. The officers and workmen of the Public Works Department of the Council had a busy time opening the way for traffic with snow ploughs. Railway employees also had a difficult time.

21 May 1955   Blizzard Causes Electricity Breaks: Cables Down    Several inches of snow blanketed Brynmawr, Ebbw Vale, and Tredegar on Tuesday, after an unprecedented mid-May blizzard. Two thousand people in Rhymney, and another 2,000 at Fochriw were without electric light and power for many hours because of the blizzard. Electric power cables were frozen by the snow, and some at Fochriw, and the lower part of the Rhymney valley, were brought to the ground.

5 January 1963   Snow Cuts Off Village As Its Last Train Storms Out    Fochriw was once again isolated following heavy snowfalls on Saturday and Monday. This time, however, there was a great difference – there were no trains. The last train on the Newport to Brecon line left on its final trip as the snow commenced. No motor vehicles entered the village from Saturday until late on Monday night. Mr. Lance Rogers, secretary of the Ogilvie Lodge of the National Union of Mineworkers, said on Tuesday: “It is impossible for the men to get to work. As far as I know, no miners have tried to get to work today.” There were deep snow-drifts on the road between Fochriw and Deri. The village was without bread, milk and newspapers. Mr. W. Morgan, a Pontlottyn dairyman and farmer, said that it had been impossible to get to Fochriw on Sunday and Monday. There were drifts of up to 10 feet on the Pontlottyn to Fochirw road, and the snow-plough failed to clear a way. A bulldozer had to be used before Fochriw was finally opened to the outside world, late on Monday night. Many motorists were taken by surprise by the blizzard. According to a police spokesman, the cars that were stranded belonged almost entirely to local people. A power failure which started at 9 p.m. on Monday continued until mid-day on Tuesday, to complete the dsicomfort of villagers living in Old Fochriw and Pontlottyn Road Council Houses.In spite of heavy snow and drifts, conditions in other parts of the Rhymney Valley are not too bad.

2 February 1963   New Snowfall Just as Valley Was Recovering    The Rhymney Valley was well on the road to recovery from the devastation caused by the snow and frost when the snow returned on Tuesday night. Although the snowfall had been heavy, it was not accompanied by frost and high winds, and added little to the Valley’s troubles, turning to slush after causing morning hold-ups to traffic. However, the water situation seems bad at the moment, but if the thaw continues, and the catchment areas re-freeze, the situation should become easier. Many houses have frozen pipes, and are still without water. The main concern now is leaking gas pipes, damaged by the frost. Only a few schools remained closed among them Fochriw Primary School.

9 February 1963   Snow Causes Valley Chaos in Cold Spell’s Last Fling    The  Arctic spell had what everybody hoped was its dying kick on Tuesday and Wednesday, when heavy snow and high winds brought back chaos to many parts of the Rhymney Valley. But the wind was from the south, and everybody hoped it would bring the much-vaunted thaw and restore conditions to normal after nine weeks of frozen misery. The heavy snowfalls became a blizzard before midnight on Tuesday, and many motorists and lorry drivers were forced to abandon their vehicles. It brought a further aftermath on Wednesday. The first buses taking people to work, hit drifts, and three Gellygaer Council buses became stuck in drifts between Fochriw and Deri. Fochriw was cut off from both Deri and Pontlottyn, and the