Motorists and commuters are facing more winter chaos throughout the country as heavy snow causes road and school closures, with widespread weather warnings extending across most of the UK into the weekend.
Parts of south-west England including Devon and Cornwall have been hit by up to 10 inches (25cm) of snow, with reports that roads are becoming blocked by cars as snow continues to fall.
Much of the region is under a yellow weather warning until 3pm on Thursday, while a separate warning for ice has been issued for the south-west – up to Bath, and extending east almost as far as Brighton – from 5pm on Thursday until 10am on Friday.
The cold blast has caused over 100 schools and nurseries in Scotland to close for consecutive days, while nearly 200 schools were reportedly shut in England and Wales on Thursday.
It comes as Storm Bert, the second named storm of the season, is due to strike the UK this weekend amid a slew of further weather warnings that last through the rest of this week, bringing heavy rain and snow together with strong winds to large parts of the country.
The entirety of Scotland is covered by a series of warnings for frequent snow showers, possible hail and icy conditions. One, put in place yesterday, was active until midday Thursday while another then lasts until 12pm on Friday.
Large swathes of England and Wales are also under a new warning for snow and ice, which is active from 12pm on Thursday until 10am on Friday, with the Met Office warning of difficult travelling conditions. Meanwhile, most of Northen Ireland is under a warning that comes into effect at 3pm on Thursday and also lasts until 10am the following day.
Between 2cm and 5cm (up to 2in) of snow is expected widely and it could reach 10cm in some parts of the north-west mainland, with higher ground seeing 15cm to 20cm (up to 7.9in) or more, according to a previous update from the Met Office.
The AA predicted “a major increase in workload” due to sub-zero temperatures, snow and ice, and urged drivers to check forecasts before travelling and to do so with “extreme caution” in the hardest-hit areas.
New yellow and amber warnings for rain, snow, ice and strong winds from Saturday to Sunday morning were also published across the UK as the country prepares for Storm Bert’s arrival.
The amber alert, for heavy snow and ice, will be in force between 7am and 5pm on Saturday in an area north of Scotland’s central belt, where 10-20cm is likely on ground above 200 metres and potentially as much as 20-40cm on hills above 400 metres.
It covers parts of Angus, Perth and Kinross, Stirlingshire, Aberdeenshire and some of the Highlands and Argyll and Bute.
Forecasters said power cuts and travel disruption are likely and there is a good chance some rural communities could become cut off.
There was already a yellow warning for heavy snow on Saturday followed by a “rapid thaw” and rain on Saturday night in north-east and north-west England, the West Midlands, Yorkshire, and much of Scotland.
Met Office spokesperson Andrea Bishop said: “A deep area of low pressure is expected to bring a spell of prolonged and, at times, heavy rainfall across a large part of the UK this weekend.
“Across south-west England, rain is expected to develop during Saturday morning with heavier rain likely later in the day and overnight into early Sunday morning.
“Fifty to 75mm of rain is expected to fall fairly widely during this time with a chance that some places over Dartmoor could see 100-125mm. Strong southerly winds will accompany the heavy rain and may locally exacerbate impacts.”
The wintry weather has affected education with more than 114 schools shut in the Highland Council area on Thursday due to snow, including Inverness Royal Academy where pupils were told their prelim exams planned for the day will be rescheduled.
Almost 40 schools in Aberdeenshire are also shut while many others had delayed openings, and in Moray around 12 are closed and others opened late.
It comes after more than 100 schools or nurseries were closed in Scotland on Wednesday because of the weather.
South of the border, 89 schools are shut in Devon on Thursday, 18 in Dorset and 60 in Cornwall, while in Wales around 10 are closed in Conwy, 18 in Denbighshire and two in Wrexham.
RAC Breakdown spokeswoman Alice Simpson said: “The first taste of winter means drivers are suddenly contending with the some of the worst road conditions we’ve seen all year. With freezing temperatures already causing disruption, we advise motorists to plan well as ice forms on untreated surfaces.”
RAC said on Wednesday that a sharp rise in vehicle breakdowns was reported as drivers’ batteries failed.
Met Office chief meteorologist Matthew Lehnert said: “A northerly airflow will continue to feed snow showers into Scotland over the next few days, with this reaching lower levels at times and bringing the potential for some travel disruption.
“Overnight temperatures will drop below zero fairly widely, which has resulted in some ice warnings, with further warnings likely through this week.
“On Thursday, a mixture of snow, sleet and rain is likely to affect the south-west which could potentially bring disruption. It’s likely that high ground in the area will see snow, with … 2-5cm of snow possible in places at lower levels, with around 10cm possible over higher parts of Dartmoor.”
Met Office meteorologist Clare Nasir said there would be brighter skies outside the warning areas on Thursday morning and into the afternoon, but a “severe frost” was likely before more “bitterly cold” temperatures on Thursday evening.
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