SNOW SWEEPS WEST– WITH MORE ON THE WAY
THE Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for snow and ice across large parts of Devon and Cornwall this week.
Snow and ice is forecast across the south of England, from Birmingham, across to London and further south.
A Met Office map shows it falling across Devon and Cornwall from 10am tomorrow, December 30, to 6am on New Year’s Eve.
The south coast of Devon is likely to escape the icy snap, as will the bottom half of Cornwall from just south of St Austell.
However, the north coasts of Devon and Cornwall and the middle of both counties could face possible disruption from snow and ice.
The Met Office warns there could be a slight chance that bus and train services may be delayed or cancelled, with some road closures and longer journey times.
There is a small chance of travel delays on roads with some stranded vehicles and passengers, along with delayed or cancelled rail and air travel.
There is also a slight chance that power cuts may occur, with the potential to affect other services, such as mobile phone coverage.
Pedestrians are also advised to be wary of slips and falls on icy surfaces.
Snow has already fallen on Dartmoor yesterday morning, with more expected on high ground and sleety showers.
The outlook for tomorrow to Friday is continuing cold with sunny spells and wintry showers affecting coasts, with widespread frost inland with some freezing fog patches and snow possible.
Temperatures across Devon and Cornwall are not expected to rise above 7C before the new year.
Simon Partridge, from the Met Office, said: “Snow showers are expected on the moors and the highest parts could remain white for several days as there are no immediate signs of the temperature warming up.”
SNOWFALL has hit some parts of the UK which are gripped by a cold snap, following days of stormy conditions.
The Met Office, which has yellow weather warnings for snow and ice in place across much of England and Wales, described it as “a cold and frosty start” to Bank Holiday Monday. Heavy snowfall prompted Gloucestershire Police to warn the public to take care and to “only go out if it is essential to do so”.
The county’s force tweeted: “Heavy snow is starting to fall in the rural parts of the county. This will cause delays on the roads.”
The force had a number of reports of snow around the county causing disruption, which was hampering people in the Forest of Dean and the A417 around Birdlip.
Staffordshire Police also warned of “serious disruption”, with several roads in the county impassable. In the West Midlands, Dudley Zoo said it would be closed due to the snow.
The weather warning says there is the potential for patches of snow across parts of England and Wales with 5-10cm falling in a few places, such as higher ground in Wales above 200 metres. It adds: “As well as snow, widespread ice may also be an issue, especially where treatment has been washed off road surfaces.”
Parts of the East Midlands, East of England, London and the South East, the North West, South West, West Midlands and Wales are covered by the warning, which runs until 10am today.
The yellow warnings from the Met Office advise of the potential for injuries from icy surfaces and delays to trains and road transport.
With another cold day in store today, the Met Office also issued a yellow weather warning for snow and ice as icy surfaces may form across parts of the UK overnight.
Wintry showers could see up to 10cm of snow over the Pennines. Treacherous conditions were predicted if thawing snow turns to ice.
Covid-19 regional restrictions mean that roads are quieter than normal, but any drivers were being urged to be prepared.
Ben Sheridan, of the AA, said: “Thawing snow, rainfall and freezing temperatures overnight lead to challenging driving conditions, with roads likely to be icy in the morning.”
There were also 85 flood warnings in place in England yesterday lunchtime.
Chilly conditions saw temperatures drop to -2.9C in Aboyne in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, on Sunday, while St Mary’s in the Scillies had the top temperature of 8.5C.
Large swathes of London, the Midlands, the South, South-West plus the east of England and Wales have also been warned that snow and ice could hit tomorrow and Thursday.
The Met Office yellow warning suggests that up to 2-5cm of snow could fall across parts of southern Wales, central and southern England, and there is a small chance of 10-15cm settling in a few places, most likely on high ground above 200 metres. There is also a risk widespread ice could form on untreated surfaces tomorrow night.
It comes after days of wintry weather over the Christmas period which brought flooding to parts of southern England before Storm Bella arrived on Boxing Day, with winds of more than 100mph.