BRITS are braced for more snow today with six warnings in place across the country after schools were closed and drivers stranded in -11C weather.
Arctic conditions will continue causing widespread travel disruption today after heavy snowfall and ice battered parts of the UK.
Residents of Whitley Bay, North Tyneside wake up to a covering of snow as cold weather causes problems across the countryNNP
The arctic freeze is set to continue for the near futureNNP
MET OfficeMet Office weather warnings[/caption]
The warnings for snow and ice cover large areas of southern England and the Midlands, including the capital – as well as Wales, Northern Ireland, east England, west Scotland and northern Scotland.
The warning for east England, where four inches of snow is expected to fall, is in place until midday today.
Forecasters confirmed that the rest remain in place until 10am today.
The Met Office have also advised that vehicles could be stranded, power cuts may occur and rural areas could be cut off.
Driving conditions on roads in northeast Wales were labelled “horrendous” and some drivers were stranded for hours on Tuesday.
The “arctic chill” also caused widespread disruption across the UK, with more than 200 school closures reported.
Snowfall was also widely reported, with 12cm of lying snow recorded at Watnall, Nottinghamshire, on Tuesday morning as an Arctic airmass influenced the UK’s weather.
Braemar in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, recorded sub-zero with the mercury falling to arctic temperatures of -11.2C, according to the Met Office.
Yesterday, the forecaster warned of snow showers developing during the evening and continuing overnight into Wednesday morning.
Showers may be heavy at times and accompanied by lightning in some areas, said the Met Office.
Some lying snow could reach up to 10cm or more over higher ground and ice is expected to form on untreated surfaces.
Southern Rail said overrunning engineering works at South Croydon will affect early morning trains between East Croydon and Uckfield/East Grinstead.
Met Office spokesman Stephen Dixon previously told the PA news agency: “We’ve had a fairly mild November so far.
“So it’ll feel like that first taste of winter for many with that snow and ice risk layered on top.”
He added: “The highest accumulations are likely over the mountains in Scotland, where over higher ground you could see around 20cm of snow through this week accumulating on the ground.
“They are not necessarily the most disruptive snowfalls, but it only takes a couple of centimetres on lower ground to cause some level of travel disruption.”
Thousands of train passengers suffered disruption on Tuesday morning and a Stagecoach bus in Aberdeenshire toppled onto its side with a passenger on board in icy conditions.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued the first amber cold weather health alert of the season, warning conditions could be dangerous for vulnerable people, including the elderly.
The amber warning covers the east and north of England, the Midlands, and Yorkshire and the Humber, with yellow alerts coming into place for the South East, South West and London until 6pm on Saturday.
Met Office chief meteorologist Neil Armstrong said: “With cold Arctic air firmly in place over the UK, continued winter hazards are likely through much of this week, with further updates to warnings likely in the coming days.”
Areas affected in the Met Office’s weather warnings
Southern England – until 10am tomorrow
Midlands – until 10am tomorrow
Eastern Wales – until 10am tomorrow
South and North Wales – until 10am tomorrow
Northern Ireland – until 10am tomorrow
East England – until 12pm tomorrow
Western Scotland – until 10am tomorrow
Nothern Scotland – until 10am tomorrow
The Met Office has issued a yellow warning for snow and ice along the east coast of Scotland and England from Berwickshire to Suffolk from 6pm on Tuesday to midday on Wednesday.
A yellow warning for snow and ice has also been issued for Northern Ireland from 6pm on Tuesday to 10am on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, a separate warning is also in place across most of Wales and parts of the West Midlands until 10am on Wednesday.
Police in Northern Ireland urged those on the roads to “drive with extra caution while we experience the freezing temperatures as forecast”.
There are also snow and ice warnings in place covering the north of Scotland until 10am on Wednesday and parts of western Scotland from 7pm on Tuesday to 10am on Wednesday.
The Met Office said cold northerly winds will continue through the week across much of the UK, with further warnings likely.
It added that temperatures were likely to increase from the south-west this weekend, though this will be accompanied by some strong winds and heavy rain.
Meanwhile, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued its first amber cold weather health alert of the season.
Along with the charity Age UK, it warned that the conditions could be dangerous for vulnerable people, including the elderly.
Dr Agostinho Sousa, from the UKHSA, said: “This is the first amber Cold Weather Health Alert of the season, but we can expect more as we approach winter, and it is vital to check in on vulnerable friends, family and neighbours to ensure they are well prepared for the onset of cold weather.”
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