The slides of March...
Ice, snow and overnight low of -10C on way
For those hoping for March to bring us a little warmth and sunshine – the wait goes on.
A blast of Arctic air will deliver a wintry week to most of the country and put spring on the backburner.
Today and tomorrow icy weather is expected in central and southern areas of England and Wales and blizzards and heavy snow are forecast in northern areas on Thursday and Friday.
overnight temperatures tonight could fall to -10C (14F) in rural areas of the North, and as low as -3C or -4C (27-25F) in the South. Highland areas of Scotland could fall as low as -15C (5F).
Up to 2cm (0.8in) of snow could settle in some places along with ice – although in other areas there will be rain.
The band of rain, sleet and snow will clear during this morning leaving most areas sunny but bitterly cold. The next band of wintry weather is set to move north from the English Channel tomorrow morning and return in western areas later in the day. Forecasters say it could produce up to 10cm (4in) of snow over south-west England and South Wales.
The conditions follow a combination of weather phenomena which have occurred for the first time since the ‘Beast from the East’ brought days of freezing weather in late February and March 2018.
Meteorological office spokesman Alex Deakin said: ‘ The weather early on Tuesday will mostly be rain but some places could wake up to a dusting of snow. on Wednesday, we could see snow across southern England and South Wales in the morning – and again in the evening in the South West and South Wales.’ Further heavy snow, accompanied by strong winds, is forecast in the North from the early hours of Thursday until Friday evening.
The Met office said roads could become blocked, leaving vehicles stranded, while some communities could be ‘cut off for several days’. Milder and unsettled weather is due to spread across England and Wales next week.