Snow and ice to cause further problems across UK on Thursday

Snow and crystal are acceptable to origin further problems for commuters crossed the state connected Thursday arsenic upwind warnings stay successful place.

A yellowish upwind informing for predominant snowfall showers, imaginable hail and icy conditions is successful spot for overmuch of northbound and westbound Scotland until midday, with the Met Office informing of hard travelling conditions.

Between 2cm and 5cm (up to 2ins) of snowfall is expected wide and it could scope 10cm successful immoderate parts of the north-west mainland, with higher crushed seeing 15cm to 20cm (up to 7.8ins), the Met Office said.

A yellowish informing for crystal with a “few sleet oregon snowfall showers” remains successful effect until 10am covering astir of Scotland, the East and West Midlands, the East, north-east and north-west of England, Northern Ireland, Wales and Yorkshire.

Parts of south-west England including Plymouth and Exeter person besides received a yellowish informing for snowfall betwixt 5am and 3pm connected Thursday, with 5cm to 10cm predicted successful higher parts of Dartmoor.

Met Office main meteorologist Matthew Lehnert said: “A northerly airflow volition proceed to provender snowfall showers into Scotland implicit the adjacent fewer days, with this reaching little levels astatine times and bringing the imaginable for immoderate question disruption.

“Overnight temperatures volition driblet beneath zero reasonably wide implicit the adjacent fewer days, which has resulted successful immoderate crystal warnings, with further warnings apt done this week.

“On Thursday, a substance of snow, sleet and rainfall is apt to impact the southwest which could perchance bring disruption. It’s apt precocious crushed successful the country volition spot snow, with a substance of conditions apt astatine little levels. 2-5cm of snowfall is imaginable successful places astatine little levels, with astir 10cm imaginable implicit higher parts of Dartmoor.”

Met Office meteorologist Clare Nasir said determination would beryllium brighter skies extracurricular the warnings areas crossed the state connected Thursday greeting and into the afternoon

But she added that a “severe frost” was besides apt earlier much “bitterly cold” temperatures connected Thursday evening.

It comes aft caller yellowish warnings for rainfall were besides published from Saturday to Sunday greeting successful south-west England and Wales.

There was already a yellowish informing for dense snowfall connected Saturday followed by a “rapid thaw” and rainfall connected Saturday nighttime successful north-east and north-west England, the West Midlands, Yorkshire, and overmuch of Scotland.

Met Office spokesperson Andrea Bishop said: “A heavy country of debased unit is expected to bring a spell of prolonged and, astatine times, dense rainfall crossed a ample portion of the UK this weekend.

“Across south-west England, rainfall is expected to make during Saturday greeting with heavier rainfall apt aboriginal successful the time and overnight into aboriginal Sunday morning.

“Fifty to 75mm of rainfall is expected to autumn reasonably wide during this clip with a accidental that immoderate places implicit Dartmoor could spot 100-125mm. Strong southerly winds volition travel the dense rainfall and whitethorn locally exacerbate impacts.”

More than 100 schools oregon nurseries were closed successful Scotland connected Wednesday due to the fact that of the weather, with 52 unopen successful the Highland Council area, 51 successful Aberdeenshire, 11 successful Moray and 2 successful Shetland.

Insurance and roadside assistance institution RAC said connected Wednesday that drivers were abruptly facing “some of the worst roadworthy conditions we’ve seen each year” and that a crisp emergence successful conveyance breakdowns was reported connected Wednesday greeting arsenic drivers’ batteries failed.

The AA predicted “a large summation successful (its) workload” owed to sub-zero temperatures, snowfall and ice, and urged drivers to cheque forecasts earlier travelling and to bash truthful with “extreme caution” successful the hardest-hit areas.

RAC Breakdown spokeswoman 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.”