More warnings for snow and ice – as tens of thousands without power
Forecasters have warned the UK should brace for more cold weather, ice and snow over the weekend, following Storm Goretti.
Saturday will bring sunnier and drier conditions than recent days, but this will give way to rain and some snow on Sunday, the Met Office said.
Yellow alerts for snow and ice have been issued for most of the country, ahead of a blast of cold air moving in overnight on Friday into Saturday.
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On Friday, Storm Goretti brought heavy rain, snow and strong winds to much of the UK, causing tens of thousands of homes to lose power.
Around 34,000 homes were without power in the South West at about 10pm on Friday, according to the National Grid, along with about 2,000 in the West Midlands, more than 1,000 in the East Midlands, and about 130 in Wales.
Car stuck in snow in Derbyshire following Storm Goretti
A tree fell on a house in Falmouth, Cornwall on Friday. Pic: PA
Trees were brought down under gale force winds and some flights were cancelled because of the storm.
Footage showed a passenger plane swaying in strong winds as it came into land at Heathrow Airport.
“Storm Goretti slopes away eastward tonight leaving a much quieter picture for Saturday,” Sky News Weather presenter Jo Wheeler said on Friday.
“However, the cold air returns with a severe frost expected tonight along with icy stretches on untreated roads and pavements.”
The Met Office issued yellow alerts for snow and ice across most of Scotland and parts of England’s northeast until 3pm on Saturday.
Another yellow warning for snow and ice is in place for Northern Ireland until 11am on Saturday.
Large parts of England’s South, West, North West, the East Midlands and Wales were also under a yellow ice warning until midday on Saturday.
Yellow warnings for snow and frosty conditions persist into Saturday. Pic: Met Office
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In the early hours of Sunday, a band of rain will move in from the west, which will create a widespread risk of snow when it hits cold air, the Met Office predicted.
Snow is especially likely in Scotland, with areas of higher ground predicted to see 10 to 20cm (4 to 8in) of snow, and lighter falls in other areas.
A yellow warning for snow and ice is in force from Sunday between 2am and 3pm, which covers a large part of northern England and virtually all of Scotland.
A band of snow is forecast on Sunday morning. Pic: Met Office
“Cloud gathers Saturday evening with rain moving in from the Atlantic,” Wheeler said.
“Meeting the cold air, there’s the potential for some short-lived disruptive snow.
“Mild air takes over after that with conditions less dramatic next week.”
Wintry scenes in the cathedral city of Lichfield, Staffordshire. Pic: PA
Temperatures will remain low across much of the country on Saturday, between 2 to 3C (35 to 37F), and will rise to 10C (50F) in some parts of the west and Northern Ireland on Sunday, creating a risk of localised flooding early next week.
