Winter back with an Arctic blast!
Weekend warnings as blizzards and ice sweep in
PARTS of Scotland are braced for blizzards this weekend, with snow and ice likely to cause travel havoc, forecasters have warned.
It comes a week after Storm Malik and Storm Corrie battered the country with gusts of more than 90mph, leaving tens of thousands of homes without power.
The Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for most of Scotland for snow and ice from 3pm yesterday until midnight.
Traffic Scotland said low temperatures in Dundee, Moray, Perth and Kinross and Aberdeenshire were likely to cause icy patches and difficult driving conditions.
Met Office chief meteorologist Andy Page said: ‘We have some fairly typical winter weather in store. It will often be windy, with bands of rain moving south-east followed by colder weather with wintry showers.
‘It is not unusual for us to see snow in February and there are no signals currently for anything out of the ordinary.’
Adverse conditions led to ferry provider CalMac cancelling four sailings by lunchtime yesterday. It issued warnings of lastminute cancellations or delays for dozens of others.
Meanwhile, Six Nations’ fans going to Edinburgh for the Calcutta Cup match will need to wrap up warm. Forecasters say it will feel like -1C at Murrayfield Stadium, where Scotland play England in the first round of the rugby tournament.
ScotRail urged passengers travelling to the game to plan ahead. A spokesman said: ‘Services will be busy due to our temporary timetable and queues are likely at stations. Catch an earlier train home if you can.’
By this evening, frequent and heavy snow showers are expected to hit.
A strong north-westerly wind is forecast to bring blizzards and snowdrifts across the Highlands. Up to six inches of snow was expected on routes above 1,000ft. A yellow warning was in place for the area from this afternoon.
Bear Scotland, which manages and maintains trunk roads for Transport Scotland, said teams will work ‘round the clock’ to ensure routes remain safe.
But a spokesman for Highland Council said: ‘Drivers must be aware that conditions can change rapidly, and make their own assessment of conditions for travelling.’
The other regions covered by the weather alert are Central, Tayside, Fife, the South West and Lothian and Borders, Strathclyde and Grampian.
Plummeting temperatures to around 1C are expected to bring icy patches, especially across western coastal areas. In some parts it will be -6C, according to the Met Office.
Arctic conditions are expected to continue tomorrow, with the yellow weather alert in place for snow and ice until 5pm.
The cold snap is the result of the jet stream. A Met Office spokesman said: ‘When the jet stream lies to the north of us, as it has been for the last few days, we see milder conditions.
‘But if it dips further south, as it is over the next couple of days, it allows colder air from the north to cross the country.’
‘Services will be busy’ ‘Colder air from the north’