The Met Office has issued a fresh round of weather warnings for snow and strong winds as Storm Goretti, the first named storm of the year, bears down on the UK.
Snow and wind warnings are now in place for Thursday and Friday, with forecasters warning of potentially dangerous conditions and urging people to prepare for disruption, including the risk of power cuts.
A spokesperson for the national weather agency said: “People cope better when they have prepared in advance for the risk of power cuts or being cut off from services and amenities due to the snow. It’s easy to do – consider gathering torches and batteries, a mobile phone power pack and other essential items.”
A large swathe of England and Wales is covered by a snow warning running from 6pm on Thursday until midday on Friday. The Met Office said Storm Goretti is “likely to bring heavy snow leading to disruption and difficult travelling conditions”.
Motorists and passengers are being warned to expect delays across road, rail and air networks, with the potential for vehicles to become stranded. Some rural communities could be cut off, while power outages and disruption to services, including mobile phone coverage, are also possible.
The latest warnings come after hundreds of schools were forced to close across Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland on Tuesday morning. National Rail has also cautioned passengers to expect cancellations and disruption to train services.
Yellow warnings for snow and ice remain in force across Wales, as well as north-east and south-west England, until 11am. Similar warnings cover much of Scotland and Northern Ireland for large parts of the day. An amber warning for heavy snow has been issued for north-east and northern Scotland from 11am until 7pm.
Forecasters have also warned of icy conditions into Wednesday. Yellow warnings for ice are in place until 10am across much of England, Wales and southern Scotland, and until 11am in Northern Ireland.
More updates are expected as the situation develops.
