00:00 As we gear up for the chills of deep winter, let's look back at a year when Sunderland was hit hard
00:07 by rainstorms and snow in 1979. This was no average winter, you might remember it as the
00:15 year when the region was sealed off by blizzards. It left thousands of motorists stranded. There
00:22 were no flights or buses in or out of the area and winds reaching Gale Force 9 lashed the coast.
00:30 Motoring organisations and the police warned drivers to keep clear of the northeast and
00:35 described it as complete chaos with nearly all roads closed. At least 1,500 vehicles were
00:43 abandoned on the A1. There were floods across Sunderland as these scenes show. Large areas
00:51 of weirside and tyneside ground to a halt as flood water turned many major roads into rivers.
00:58 And if that wasn't enough, we were hit by snowstorms as well, leaving some areas under
01:04 three foot of it. It might have been great for the children on the sledges, but drivers faced
01:10 bedlam on the roads. Weather officials said it was the worst winter for 26 years. We might not
01:17 be facing such severe conditions this year, but we want your memories of 1979. Email them
01:25 to chris.cordner@nationalworld.com
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