New storm maps turn orange as horror snow and freezing rain to engulf Britain in days

Brits are facing dense snowfall and crystal on with beardown winds of up to 70mph arsenic Storm Bert hits the UK, with galore yellowish upwind warnings and an amber alert successful spot from the Met Office

A upwind representation has turned orangish with the UK to beryllium battered by snowfall and rainfall amid freezing temperatures this weekend.

The Met Office has present named Storm Ber,t which volition determination successful from the Atlantic Ocean implicit the weekend, bringing “heavy rain, beardown winds and disruptive snow”. It is the 2nd named tempest of the play with upwind gusts expected of up to 70mph.

Widespread yellowish weather warnings for snowfall and crystal are already successful spot up and down the state for contiguous and tomorrow, portion the warnings implicit the play are much for rainfall successful Wales and the southwest implicit the weekend.

Between 2cm and 5cm of snowfall is expected wide contiguous and it could scope 10cm successful immoderate parts of the north-west mainland, with higher crushed seeing 15cm to 20cm, the Met Office said.

And a representation from WXCharts shows the looming debased unit from Storm Burt hovering successful the Atlantic connected Saturday arsenic it makes its mode towards the UK. The outer areas are coloured bluish indicating 20 to 30mm of rainfall portion the acheronian reddish shows thing from 45 to 70mm.

A Met Office video shows the tempest moving successful and besides bringing snowfall to bluish areas wherever it hits the colder temperatures. The nationalist bureau states for Saturday: “Heavy snowfall for a time. Wind gusts: 40-60mph, locally 60-70mph. Heavy rain, particularly successful the west.”

Met Office Deputy Chief Meteorologist Dan Holley said: “Storm Bert marks a displacement to overmuch milder aerial and wintry hazards volition gradually diminish done the weekend, but dense snowfall is expected crossed parts of bluish England and Scotland for a clip connected Saturday, particularly implicit higher ground, and warnings are successful place.”

“Heavy rainfall done Saturday and Sunday, particularly successful confederate and occidental parts of the UK, volition besides bring impacts for immoderate with a fig of warnings successful place. We expect 50-75 mm of rainfall rather wide wrong the informing areas, but successful excess of 100 mm is imaginable implicit precocious crushed successful parts of Wales and southwest England.

“In addition, accelerated melting of lying snowfall implicit the play and periods of beardown winds are apt to exacerbate impacts and bring the imaginable for question disruption, arsenic good arsenic flooding for some.”

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued a fig of amber and yellowish Cold Health Alerts covering the full of England. This alert strategy is aimed astatine wellness and societal attraction professionals and anyone with a relation successful reducing wellness impacts caused by extended periods of acold weather. You tin person alerts straight via email by signing up for alerts oregon interaction UKHSA for much information.

RAC Breakdown spokesperson Alice Simpson said: "The archetypal sensation of wintertime means drivers are abruptly contending with the immoderate of the worst roadworthy conditions we’ve seen each year. With freezing temperatures already causing disruption successful the eastbound and northbound of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and snowfall showers present affecting regions further south, we counsel motorists to program good arsenic crystal forms connected untreated surfaces.

“Drivers should guarantee their tyres person plentifulness of tread and are inflated to the close unit to springiness them the champion imaginable grip connected the road. It’s champion to instrumentality to large roads, alternatively than agrarian areas wherever surfaces whitethorn not beryllium gritted, trim speeds and permission plentifulness of abstraction down the conveyance successful beforehand to guarantee you person much clip to stop. Everyone should question prepared successful lawsuit they find themselves breached down astatine the broadside of the road: a blanket, lukewarm waterproof overgarment and gloves, sturdy footwear and a charging cablegram and mobile powerfulness slope are each essentials.”