Snow wars - where is the military?

In case you have missed it, the UK has come to a halt due to the snow (see here). I am fine with the fact that we only get ‘hit’ by bad weather for two or three weeks a year and therefore should not invest too heavily to counteract the impact of bad weather. We are economically constrained and I would rather my tax be spent on education, police and other critical public services. But I would have expected some pre-emptive measures. Did you know that modern science actually allows us to observe and predict weather patterns – I fear this is news to the government. I would also like to know why the army are not out with shovels at the major airports, helping to move snow and why they are not also providing the essential man-power and resources to support the thousands of people who are stranded. Surely they are well skilled for dealing with situations like these? Why has no one thought to ask for their help...or the MoD mandated it? Surely I cannot be the first person to think about involving the military? Would they not do this in North America under similar circumstances? Did I miss something?