Just a week after Arctic conditions caused chaos across Britain, a new low-pressure weather system dubbed the Pest from the West has triggered yellow warnings for snow and ice for parts of northern England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
However, the latest cold snap is “not expected to be as vicious as the blizzards that covered most of the UK in snow” last week, the newspaper adds.
Forecasters said up to 10cm of snow was expected on higher ground, while "much lower ground was unlikely to see any", reports The Daily Telegraph.
The Met Office’s Aidan McGivern told the Daily Express:
“Later on Thursday we are going to pull in cold air and there is a risk of hill snow for Wales, northern England and Scotland, which could cause some issues, although not as severe as last week.”
The Pest from the West is “already causing problems on the roads in Huddersfield and West Yorkshire, with crashes already being reported to police”, says the Daily Mirror.
Some schools were also closed today, while others started lessons later than normal.
28 February
UK weather: major travel disruption expected as Met Office issues first red alert
The Met Office has issued a red alert warning as the cold front nicknamed the Beast from the East threatens to bring parts of the country to a standstill.
Forecasters are warning that some communities “could become cut off for several days” by the snow storms, which are expected to block roads and interrupt power supplies.
National Rail has advised passengers in affected areas to head home immediately, with services to be suspended tonight and into tomorrow morning.
All trains on the Caledonian Sleeper, the overnight service connecting London to Edinburgh and Glasgow, have been cancelled.
Elsewhere in the UK, amber weather warnings are in place over eastern and central Scotland, northeast England and parts of Lincolnshire, Yorkshire and the East Midlands.
Almost all of the country’s train operators have been affected by the severe weather, with delays and cancellations across the rail network. Travel updates are available on National Rail’s website.
In the capital, Transport for London has pledged to keep key roadways, pavements and cycle paths free for pedestrians - and it has stocked up to make good on the promise, City A.M. reports. Between TfL and borough councils, “more than 100,000 tonnes of salt are available at key locations across London for gritting”.
26 February
UK weather: snow set to spell travel chaos for commuters
Commuters are facing a week of travel chaos as the “Beast from the East” brings Siberian temperatures to the UK, forecasters are warning.
Some parts of the UK “are set to feel colder than places in the Arctic Circle, and the majority of the country has been warned of potential delays on the roads, trains and in the air”, says the London Evening Standard.
The Met Office is forecasting “heavy snow showers” that are expected to affect a range of services.
A spokesman told Sky News: “Some delays and cancellations to rail and air travel are likely. There is a good chance that some rural communities could become cut off.”
“Power cuts are likely and other services, such as mobile phones, may be affected.”
The Army is “at the ready, with hundreds of soldiers on standby to deal with ‘contingencies and emergencies’ over the coming days”, says the Daily Express.
A yellow warning for today and tomorrow was last night upgraded to a more serious amber in eastern and central England, amid alerts that parts of Britain will feel close to -15C (5F) during the day as a result of windchill.
Train companies across the country warned of disruption to services this evening. South Eastern advised customers not to travel after 6pm, while Greater Anglia said that trains would run until 10pm only. C2C said it could also implement limited services and that services after 9pm on Monday may be altered or cancelled.
Transport for London (TfL) urged London Underground users to check before travelling.
Monday “started with four Tube lines facing delays due to a batch of signal failures - and a faulty train”, says City AM.
Today is set to be the warmest day in the UK this week, with meteorologists predicting up to 10cm of snow in London and the southeast on Thursday.
Met Office meteorologist Charlie Powell said: “Unusually for Britain, the snow is going to be quite dry, so it will blow around and gather in drifts and we could see some blizzard conditions.
“We don’t want to scare people but they should make sure they are prepared for some seriously cold weather.”
Fellow meteorologist Alex Burkill said snowfall could be “quite frequent and persistent” on Tuesday, with further wintry showers expected on Wednesday.
“On Thursday, it will be windy and feel very cold. The temperatures will barely climb above freezing but it will feel as if it is between -5C or -10C,” Burkill added.
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