UK weather: Heavy snowfall sweeps eastwards causing disruption

31 Jan 2019 | Canada | 370 |
UK weather: Heavy snowfall sweeps eastwards causing disruption

The South West is worst affected - with teenage students at one college in Bodmin having to stay there overnight.

The freezing weather is moving across southern England and Wales, affecting Wiltshire, Hampshire, Sussex and Kent.

There are warnings of rail delays and flights cancellations into Friday morning.

The Met Office has warned of "treacherous driving conditions" in some southern areas.

There are two yellow warnings in place for snow and ice for large parts of the UK, lasting until Friday afternoon.

Snow depths of 12cm (5in) have been recorded in Bodmin, Cornwall, the Met Office said. Parts of Cumbria have seen 8cm of snow, while there was 7cm recorded in Inverness-shire and 5cm in Powys.

Disruption so far includes:

About 100 drivers have been stuck for hours on the A30 in Cornwall
Dozens of schools in the county will be closed on Friday, while students at Callywith College have been forced to stay overnight
Transport for London had advised commuters to try to finish their journeys by 21:00 GMT due to warnings of ice, sleet, snow and windy conditions
British Airways has warned that some short-haul flights to and from Heathrow Airport on Friday morning have been cancelled or merged
Southeastern Trains has introduced a winter timetable for Friday morning and South West Railway has warned of cancellations as tracks are cleared
Newquay Airport was closed due to the snowstorm but has now reopened
Some schools in Wales closed early and others have announced they will be shut on Friday
Chepstow Racecourse has also cancelled Friday's meet
An "intensive effort" is taking place to rescue motorists stuck on the A30 at Bodmin Moor, local police said.

Highways England said traffic was moving "very slowly forward".

Cornwall Council has warned that abandoned vehicles on the A30 and other roads are delaying efforts to free trapped motorists.

Matt Argyle, 46, got stuck on the A30 at around 16:00 but was managing to stay warm after packing a sleeping bag and some extra clothes.

"A police search and rescue vehicle has just driven past but that's the first service vehicle I've seen," he said.

"There's no cars on the other side of the road so it must be completely blocked somewhere."

Cars stuck on A30

Journalism student Georgette Beacham, 28, got caught in the snow while returning from Plymouth to Falmouth.

She said: "Everyone was driving slowly but particularly on the hills, cars were jack-knifing and people were getting stuck going up hill and skidding going down hill and having to pull over."

How to prepare for the snow
Do I have to go to work in the snow?
British Airways advised customers to check their flight status for cancellations and said people due to travel on short-haul flights were being offered the option to postpone their journey.

"Safety is always our priority, and we're working hard to keep our operation moving. We're sorry that some of our services are being delayed by the weather conditions," a spokeswoman said.

Southeastern Trains said 21 trains were cancelled or altered to minimise the impact of ice forming on the rails.

It will run its "winter weather timetable" on Friday - with passengers warned of peak services being busier than normal because of changes to some train times.

South Western Railway has warned passengers that trains may be cancelled on Friday morning while the tracks are checked and cleared. BBC