As temperatures continue to drop across the UK, commuters have been warned about icy roads and the likely travel disruption that will result. The Met Office has issued fresh weather warnings which forecast snow, fog and ice across southern England, Wales, Northern Ireland and northern Scotland on Thursday. While it will be mainly dry elsewhere, temperatures could fall again to as low as -16C on Thursday night. Heavy snowfall in some areas has already led to dozens of flood alerts and warnings due to either heavy rain or melting snow.
As of Wednesday morning, the lowest temperature recorded was -8.4C in Shap, Cumbria according to the Met Office. This comes as an amber cold health alert, meaning the forecast weather is expected to have significant impacts on health – including a rise in deaths – remains in place for all of England until Sunday. Furthermore, the Met Office has warned that travel disruptions to road and rail services are likely in areas covered by warnings, as well as potential accidents in the icy places.
The current weather warnings are as follows:
• A yellow warning for snow and ice is in place for northern Scotland until midnight on Thursday
• A yellow warning for ice has been issued until 10:30 across southern England and south-east Wales
• Two yellow warnings for snow and ice are in force until 11:00 GMT – one across western Wales and north-west England, and south-west England; and another for Northern Ireland
• A yellow warning for fog until 09:00 in Northern Ireland.
Reports suggest that on Wednesday, drivers in Devon and Cornwall were stuck for hours after snow caused some of the roads to close. Additionally, car insurer RAC stated that it has seen the highest levels of demand for rescues in a three-day period since December 2022. National Rail has advised passengers to check before they travel due to the potential speed restrictions and line closures that may arise as a result of the ice and snow.
While the wintry conditions have caused significant disruption across the UK since snow swept many parts of the country at the weekend, the current weather is expected to be less cold over the weekend. Nonetheless, people are urged to remain vigilant and check the latest forecast updates to ensure that they remain safe
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