Snow flurries forecast across UK.

Snow is expected to fall over much of the UK and is likely to cause disruption in some areas on Thursday.

The Met Office said about 2cm of snow is likely in central and southern England, with up to 5cm in north-east England and eastern Scotland.


_{North-east England and some of Scotland is likely to see snow}

The Met Office says "there is the possibility of disruption due to snow across many parts of the UK."

But the cold snap is expected to pass quickly, with milder weather on Friday and Saturday.

Central and southern England is expected to see the most snow on Thursday morning, with about 2cm expected in Hampshire, Lincolnshire, Kent and London.

The snow will settle inland, but not in coastal areas where there is likely to be rain.

Daytime temperatures will struggle to get above 2 or 3C in these areas and a strong wind is likely to make the weather feel much colder.

And temperatures will be around 3C in Cardiff.

The cold weather is expected to move north over the course of the day.

The north-east of England and east Scotland is set to see the coldest weather in the afternoon and evening, with up to 5cm of snow in some areas and deeper snowfall in the Grampians.

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Forecast snow arrives in Scotland.

The first heavy snows of the winter have arrived as strong easterly winds sent temperatures tumbling.

The Met Office issued a weather warning covering almost the entire UK, with forecasters predicting Scotland would be particularly badly hit.

The east coast was bearing the brunt during Thursday, with Braemar in Aberdeenshire affected. The south of Scotland has also been hit by snow.


_{Snow has started hitting parts of Scotland on Thursday}

The cold snap is likely to be short-lived, forecasters said.

The first serious snow fall of the winter is expected to hit on Thursday afternoon.

10cm expected

Forecasters predicted only small parts of the west coast would escape the snow as temperatures plummet over Thursday night.

But temperatures will be rising again on Friday morning, and snow will be replaced by rain.

Eastern parts will be worst affected - with up to 5cm of snow expected in inland parts of Aberdeenshire - and 10cm on higher ground.

High winds will lead to drifting and blizzards in parts.

Bear Scotland, which is responsible for keeping main roads clear, said it was ready to cope and had a fleet of more than 30 spreaders and ploughs in position.

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Heavy snow has hampered travel in the north-east of England and Cumbria, with motorists urged to avoid journeys unless they are absolutely necessary. A section of the northbound A1 in Northumberland was closed due to the high number of stranded vehicles. In east Cleveland, police patrols assisted scores of drivers involved in minor accidents in blizzard conditions. The Met Office has predicted up to 10cm of snow in parts of Northumberland, County Durham and Cumbria. Other parts of England, including Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, were also hit by freezing conditions.

Treacherous conditions
A spokesman for Northumbria Police said: "A number of vehicles have become stuck in the snow on the northbound A1 near Morpeth and as a result it has been decided not to allow any more through until conditions improve and recovery has taken place." Cleveland Police described road conditions as "treacherous" and urged drivers to postpone journeys until weather conditions improved. In neighbouring County Durham, police said most roads were passable, but only with care. In South Cumbria, police closed the A5092 at Grizebeck, and there were reports of icy conditions on higher roads, including those near Corney Fell and Cold Fell.

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The snow arrived in west Belfast just after 1900 GMT, according to Karenann Toney from Andersonstown.

Andrew Tubman captured this image of children enjoying the snow in Spa, County Down.

But the snow also caused havoc for motorists. Tim Forshaw took this picture from his house near Banbridge, County Down.

Motorists also faced a treacherous journey during a snow storm in Crossgar, County Down.

But Thomas Brown (eight) and his sister Jessie (seven) were delighted with the weather at Ardkeen, near Portaferry.

NI gripped by big winter freeze

Northern Ireland is in the grip of a winter freeze after heavy snowfalls with predictions of more on the way. The Met Office has said up to 5cm of snow will fall in the next few hours. Counties Armagh, Antrim, Down and Londonderry have been particularly affected and police have urged drivers to exercise extreme caution.


There has been heavy snowfall in Crossgar, County Down

About 5,000 homes in Lisburn have been left without electricity after a power cut thought to have been caused by a lightning strike at a power generator. Several sets of traffic lights in the city are also out. Northern Ireland Electricity has said it is investigating but cannot at this stage say when power will be restored.

Public transport has also been affected by the wintry weather conditions. Translink has suspended bus services in several areas including Ballynahinch, Newcastle, Downpatrick, Newry, Banbridge and Portaferrry. Weather experts say the snow has been caused by cold air from the Continent meeting rain over the North Sea.

_{Bron: BBC} | Gewijzigd: 14 augustus 2017, 15:18 uur, door Joyce.s

Snowfall havoc for NI commuters.

Heavy overnight snow is causing havoc on Northern Ireland's roads, however, the Roads Service says all are passable with care.

Commuters travelling into Belfast are expected to face large tailbacks as efforts continue to clear the snow.

Numerous schools have already said they will be closed. Eletricity has been restored to all but about 200 homes.


_{There has been heavy snowfall in Crossgar, County Down}

Numerous schools have already said they will be closed. Eletricity has been restored to all but about 200 homes.

Counties Armagh, Antrim, Down and Londonderry were badly affected by the much heavier than anticipated fall.

Weather experts say the snow has been caused by cold air from the Continent meeting rain over the North Sea.

BBC weather forecaster Peter Gibbs said: "There has been a lot of snow overnight over the eastern side of Northern Ireland with up to 12cm in Belfast. There's been more snow for Cumbria and across a large part of Scotland. That will clear away for a time today.

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_©BBC | Gewijzigd: 14 augustus 2017, 15:19 uur, door Joyce.s

Bad weather sparks rescue efforts.

Extreme winter weather has caused a series of emergency situations for rescue services in Scotland.

A 60-year-old man is missing after he set out on the Dhorlin causeway between Daavar Island and the Mull of Kintyre.


_{The causeway links Daavar Island for only a few hours a day}

His four-wheel-drive vehicle has been found by rescue teams but there is no trace of the driver.

A 48-year-old woman from Edinburgh has gone missing in the Kirkmichael hills in Perthshire where it is thought she set out alone to take pictures.

High tide

A rescue helicopter, police, coastguard and lifeboat teams have been involved in the search for the man.

A spokesman for Strathclyde Police confirmed the alarm had been raised at about 1825 GMT on Friday. High tide had covered the short causeway by 2100 GMT.

Davaar is a tiny island in the Kilbrannan Sound near Campbeltown which is uninhabited apart from two holiday cottages and a lighthouse.

It is linked to the mainland for just a few hours a day by the shingle causeway.

A fishing boat with seven crew on board is being towed to land by a lifeboat after taking in water off western Scotland.

A Royal Navy helicopter flew 23 miles south of Tiree in the Inner Hebrides to winch the crew to safety.

_©BBC | Gewijzigd: 14 augustus 2017, 15:19 uur, door Joyce.s

An avalanche warning has been issued for Helvellyn, England's third highest mountain, with climbers urged to stay away from the Cumbrian peak. The Lake District National Park Authority said unstable snow and ice at all levels of the mountain, plus gales, had made any ascent dangerous. "There is a high avalanche risk until the snow pack has time to consolidate," it warned.

On Friday there was a wind chill of -15.9C on the 3,117ft (950m) peak. Fell top assessor Craig Palmer said: "High winds are moving the snow around and it's not bonding. "It's lethal underfoot as edges are literally breaking away. An added danger comes from a cornice of snow, which could break off and avalanche at any time. "I've rarely seen anything as bad as this in the Lake District and I would strongly urge people, even those experienced in winter mountaineering, not to venture out on to hills until the situation improves." The authority said that none of the climbs on the mountain were in a fit condition for climbing.

_{Bron: BBC} | Gewijzigd: 14 augustus 2017, 15:19 uur, door Joyce.s