Fresh weather warnings have been issued for ice ahead of a blast of snow over the weekend. The yellow Met Office warning indicates there could be icy surfaces in northern and western Scotland, the north west of England and Northern Ireland.
A yellow warning is in place from noon on Saturday until 9am on Monday and covers all regions of England other than the South West, the majority of Wales and parts of southern Scotland. About 5cm of snow is expected widely across the Midlands, Wales and northern England, with as much as 20-30cm over high ground in Wales and the Pennines, the forecaster added.
The warning is in place from 5pm on Thursday until 10am on Friday morning, and could make for difficult travelling conditions, the forecaster warned. A snow and ice warning is also in place covering parts of northern Scotland between 4pm on Thursday and 10am on Friday.
A yellow weather warning for snow has been issued
Scattered wintry showers will be replaced by a longer spell of rain and sleet on Thursday night, particularly across western Scotland and Northern Ireland. As temperatures dip below freezing, this will lead to a risk of ice on untreated surfaces, the forecaster said.
Strong winds could lead to snow drifts in some areas, and freezing rain as temperatures creep up could add to the risk of ice. Met Office meteorologist Tom Morgan said: “At the moment we’ve issued a very large snow warning for Saturday until Monday but it doesn’t mean that everywhere within that warning could see snow, it’s just a heads-up there could be some impacts.”
On Thursday, London councils activated an emergency accommodation protocol for people sleeping rough in freezing conditions. The emergency measures, which will see extra beds made available, have been active for three nights so far this winter.