The Met Office has issued two amber warnings for snow and ice on Thursday. The warnings cover north Wales and north west Shropshire from 08:00 GMT to 15:00, and the Peak District and south Pennines from 12:00 until 18:00. Between 10 and 15cm of snow is expected across both warning areas, with up to 25cm possible on higher ground. A yellow warning for snow and ice covering much of Scotland is already in force.
The “persistent and at times heavy” snow in the areas covered by the new amber warnings is expected to develop in the morning before easing later that day. The Met Office has warned of travel disruption and advised people to avoid driving if possible. Delays on roads and disruption to rail travel are likely in affected areas. Power cuts are possible and there is a good chance of some rural communities being temporarily cut off.
Untreated pavements and cycle paths are likely to be impassable, with injuries from slips and falls likely on icy surfaces. Strong easterly winds may also result in some snow drifts. The snow will fall as rain moving north-east across England and Wales on Thursday morning comes up against colder air. Hills and mountains above around 200m in affected areas are likely to get significant snow. Trans-Pennine roads are likely to be closed due to heavy snow.
Away from high ground in north Wales and northern England, there is still likely to be a spell of snow falling that could bring other travel disruption, especially around the morning commute. The amount of snow here though can depend on a number of different factors and may vary across relatively short distances. For many, even though there could temporarily be snow falling, it is more likely that sleet or rain will be mixed in. This will be more the case through Thursday afternoon as the area of rain, sleet and snow moves north into southern Scotland and Northern Ireland allowing milder air to spread north
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