New weather warnings issued for Wales after snow closes schools and disrupts travel

A new ice warning has been issued for parts of Wales after snowy conditions forced the closure of around 140 schools and led to widespread travel disruption.

The Met Office has put in place a yellow warning for ice covering eastern Wales, much of southern England, and the Midlands from 5pm on Tuesday to 10am on Wednesday.

There are also snow and ice warnings for much of central and south Wales until 11.59pm on Tuesday.

A separate snow and ice warning for parts of central and north Wales is also in place from midnight until midday on Wednesday.

Several other warnings for snow and ice are in force across the UK, with the Met Office advising that vehicles could be stranded, power cuts may occur and rural areas could be cut off.

Sub-zero temperatures

Monday night saw sub-zero temperatures for much of the UK, reaching as low as -11.2C at Braemar in Aberdeenshire.

Met Office spokesman Stephen Dixon said temperatures could drop to -12C in rural parts of Scotland and -7C in rural parts of Wales on Wednesday night.

Mr Dixon told the PA news agency: “We’ve had a fairly mild November so far.

“So it’ll feel like that first taste of winter for many with that snow and ice risk layered on top.”

He added: “The highest accumulations are likely over the mountains in Scotland, where over higher ground you could see around 20cm of snow through this week accumulating on the ground.

“They are not necessarily the most disruptive snowfalls, but it only takes a couple of centimetres on lower ground to cause some level of travel disruption.”

Arctic air

Met Office Chief Meteorologist Neil Armstrong said: “With cold Arctic air firmly in place over the UK, continued winter hazards are likely through much of this week, with further updates to warnings likely in the coming days.”

The Met Office also issued a yellow warning for snow and ice along the east coast of Scotland and England from Berwickshire to Suffolk from 6pm on Tuesday to midday on Wednesday.

A yellow warning for snow and ice covering Northern Ireland has also been issued from 6pm on Tuesday to 10am on Wednesday.

The Met Office said cold northerly winds will continue through the week across much of the UK, with further warnings likely.

It added that temperatures were likely to increase from the south-west this weekend, though this will be accompanied by some strong winds and heavy rain.