Met Office Issues Weather Alerts As Snow Could ‘Cut Off’ Some Areas

Further weather warnings are in place for snow around the UK, with the Met Office warning that some people could be “cut off” by the drifts.

Amber “be prepared” warnings are in place for snow for the east and west Midlands, East of England, London and the South East, North West England, Wales and Yorkshire and the Humber.

These are in place between 4am and 6pm on Sunday.

A number of warnings are in force across the UK including strong winds for southern areas on Sunday – gusts could approach 70 mph in places – stay #weatheraware pic.twitter.com/f6wIsvOpIt

December 9, 2017
The Met Office said: “A spell of heavy snow is likely over parts of Wales, the Midlands and parts of Northern and Eastern England on Sunday.

“Road, rail and air travel delays are likely, as well as stranding of vehicles and public transport cancellations.

“There is a good chance that some rural communities could become cut off.”

Yellow “be aware” alerts are in place for wind, snow and ice in other areas (full details can be found here).

Forecasters say 10-20 cm is possible for some locations and the worst areas affected mainly in northern Scotland.

At 8pm on Saturday evening, temperatures had already plummeted to -9C in Dalwhinnie in Scotland.

After school closures and power cuts in Scotland on Friday, the heaviest and most frequent snow showers are predicted in the north east of the country during Saturday.

Around 18,000 homes across Scotland were affected by power cuts due to the weather, according to Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks, with power returned to the majority of affected homes by Friday evening.

However, further cuts are expected with more snowfall.

Highways England advised road users intending to travel through the West Midlands and the northwest of England to check the forecast and road conditions before they travel, with the threat of disruption throughout the weekend.

Council gritting teams are on standby to cover roads across the country with fleets of vehicles out overnight into Saturday morning.

Birmingham Airport have warned passengers travelling on Sunday morning to allow more time for their journey as a result, while Manchester Airport advised passengers to check before travelling.

Arriva Trains Wales and Scotrail also issued warnings.