“YES, we have enough salt” – that is the message from Oxfordshire County Council as residents brace themselves for plummeting temperatures.

A light blanket of snow cloaked much of the county yesterday and more of the white stuff could fall before the weekend.

And icy temperatures – already struggling to edge above freezing during the day – are set to fall as low as -10C by Saturday in some parts of the county.

The cold snap has been caused by weather moving in from Scandinavia and Russia.

Met Office spokesman Barry Gromett said: “It gets colder again towards the weekend as we lose the cloud, things settle down, and we get clear nights.

“In the next few days, early morning temperatures look to be around -3C or -4C in towns, probably as low as -7C or -8C in rural spots.

“Nearer the weekend we could be looking at -5C, -10C in rural areas.”

He said some light snow could fall before the weekend.

The county council’s 27 gritting lorries have been called into action much earlier than usual as Oxfordshire remains gripped by the earliest snowfall since 1993.

Gritters, operating from five depots across the county, salt about half of the county’s A and B roads – some 1,200 miles – with the Highways Agency responsible for major routes such as the M40 and A34.

The council was one of the few authorities that did not run out of salt last winter.

However, grit was rationed and depleted salt levels at Oxfordshire depots were replenished during the summer months.

Mick Quainton, the council’s winter maintenance supervisor, said plans were drawn up on a daily basis based on the latest weather forecasts. He added: “It’s a very early start. We don’t usually get this until Christmas.”

County spokesman Owen Morton said: “Our current salt levels are good, and we have more in stock than we started with last winter. The picture is constantly changing as salt is used and replenished.”