Britain battered by blizzards as Met Office issues five-day snow and ice alert

Parts of the North have been hit by blizzards and heavy snowfall overnight as forecasters have issued five days of weather alerts.

An amber weather warning for snow came in force across parts of South Yorkshire, Derbyshire, West Yorkshire and Greater Manchester from 3am this morning and will last until 1pm.

Between 5cm and 10cm of snow could fall over higher ground in southern Scotland and the north of England, with the possibility of 20cm or more in the highest areas.

There is also an alert for snow and ice from central Scotland down to the midlands, and a yellow weather warning for rain in Northern Ireland, in force until midday today.

Jason Kelly, deputy chief meteorologist for the Met Office, said: ‘While the south of the UK hangs on to the milder air for much of this week as we approach the weekend, the area of low pressure responsible for the snow across the north of the UK will clear, allowing colder air to push south and west across much of the country.

‘Further snow is expected for most parts of Scotland on Friday, while Saturday will be cold for all.’

For the rest of the week, a yellow warning for snow is in place in northern Scotland until 6am on Saturday, and heavy rain is expected to fall in County Durham and Yorkshire overnight tonight.

Between 3cm and 8cm of snow is likely to fall for the rest of the week, with 10cm to 15cm possible in areas above 200 metres.

Heavy snow caused travel chaos overnight with vehicles becoming stuck on the eastbound M62 near Rochdale, Lancashire, between junction 21 for Milnrow and junction 22 for Denshaw, leading to a temporary closure of the carriageway.

A lorry also jack-knifed on the same motorway westbound between junction 23 and junction 22 in the early hours of the morning.

Forecasters warned drivers are at risk of becoming stranded in the snow, while rail and air cancellations are likely.

Power cuts and disruption to mobile phone coverage are also expected, while rural communities face being cut off completely.

The snow is expected to move north over the course of this morning, before clearing and becoming brighter from the south in the early afternoon.

It is a much milder picture further south, with temperatures hitting 10°C in Cornwall yesterday – compared with lows of -7°C in northern Scotland.

But with the milder weather comes persistent rain and flood risks, with 53 flood warnings from the Environment Agency in place across England, and a further 154 flood alerts.

Natural Resources Wales has issued three flood alerts, one for the Carmarthenshire coast, one for Upper Severn in Powys and another for south Pembrokeshire.

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