Snow fell across several major cities across the UK overnight, including London – with airports forced to suspend flights as temperatures took a nose dive to -11C
Several Brits have woken up to a winter wonderland on their doorsteps after large chunks of the country were blanketed in snow overnight.
It comes amid a raft of fresh warnings the UK will be hit by more heavy snow and freezing rain today, which could lead to further disruption. Transport networks were already struggling to cope with the challenging conditions brought on by snowfall on Saturday, with intense flurries forcing several major airports to suspend flights as temperatures took a nose dive to -11C.
Snow showers swept across the northeast, northwest and East of England, as well as in parts of Wales, Scotland and even down south in London. Bristol and Birmingham airports temporarily closed their runways as both sites were battered by heavy snow, while Manchester Airport said it would be prioritising the safety of passengers and “will resume as soon as possible”.
An amber weather warning for snow and ice remains in place for Wales, while another covers from the Midlands up to Manchester. Less severe yellow weather warnings are also in force for parts of Scotland, Northern Ireland and elsewhere in England.
A new yellow rain warning came into force this morning for southern England from Cornwall across to Kent and will last until 9am on Monday. The Met Office has said some rural communities could be cut off, with up to 40cm (15.7in) of snow expected to fall on ground above 300m, before conditions begin to ease later on on Sunday.
Met Office meteorologist, Greg Dewhurst, said in an update on this weekend’s weather that there continues to be a risk of heavy rain, snow and ice across many parts of the UK. He said: “Many parts of the UK [are] seeing warnings throughout this weekend. Snow and ice covering large parts of England and Wales, also northern parts of Scotland as well.
“As we head through Saturday and in to Sunday, we start to see significant snowfall across parts of England and Wales – perhaps up to 40cm over the higher ground [and] parts of northern England, the Pennines in particular.” He said it was “worth keeping up to date with the forecast” as the information is likely to change through the weekend.
UK Health Security Agency cold weather health alerts for all of England remain in place ahead of a week of low temperatures. Amber alerts were issued on Thursday and will run until January 8, meaning a rise in deaths is likely, the agency said.
