The UK is experiencing its first significant winter blast, with blizzards, ice, and freezing temperatures causing widespread disruption. Hundreds of schools have closed, roads are blocked or treacherous, and power cuts have been reported in some areas.
The Met Office has issued eight yellow snow and ice warnings for Thursday, covering Devon and Cornwall, parts of Kent, the east coast, East Anglia, north-east England, south-west and north-west Wales, Northern Ireland, and northern Scotland. An amber alert is in place for the North York Moors and Yorkshire Wolds, warning of blizzards and up to 25cm of snow on hills.
In Scotland, Aberdeenshire was worst hit with over 90 schools closed. In Wales, 36 schools shut in Pembrokeshire, 14 in Carmarthenshire, and seven in Ceredigion. About 30 schools in North Yorkshire, eight in East Yorkshire, and several in Northumberland also closed. Major roads including the A1 and A171 were closed, with police advising only essential travel.
The AA urged drivers to slow down, as stopping distances can increase tenfold on ice. Temperatures dropped to -6.6C in Oxfordshire and could fall to -10C in rural Scotland overnight. 'Thundersnow' was reported in Aberdeenshire and off the north-east coast.
The UK Health Security Agency has an amber cold health alert for northern England until Saturday. However, temperatures are expected to rise towards the weekend, though conditions will remain wet and windy.
