Two men have died and homeowners face flooding as Storm Bert continues to batter the UK with heavy snow, power cuts and blistering winds.
A man in his 60s was killed after a tree fell on a car on the A34 near Winchester hours after a man was killed after his vehicle crashed into a wall in Yorkshire.
Elsewhere, five adults and five children had to be rescued from a house in Llanarmon Dyffryn Ceiriog in north Wales following a landslide.
Homeowners in Wales were preparing for flooding on Saturday evening as Natural Resources Wales (NRW) issued a series of flood warnings and alerts across the country, as bridges are shut and roads closed.
Winds of up to 70mph are set to batter coastal areas and, as temperatures rise on Saturday, melting snow and heavy rain are causing flooding, with UK power chiefs saying the worst of the impact is yet to come.
The Met Office warned of 18 hours of non-stop rain in London from 9am on Saturday to the early hours of Sunday, with wind speeds set to reach 53mph by 10am tomorrow.
Weather warnings are in place for much of the UK, with the storm described as a "multiple hazard event."
Hampshire Police said a man died after a tree fell onto a car on the A34 southbound near Winchester on Saturday morning. his family has been informed.
The force was called at 7.47am to the southbound carriageway between Kings Worthy and Winnall and found the driver of a black Mercedes E350 dead at the scene.
It is unclear if the incident was related to Storm Bert but the cause is under investigation.
A silver Skoda Kodiaq was also damaged but no other injuries were reported.
Hours earlier another man was killed after a car crashed into a wall, West Yorkshire Police said.
The collision took place at 12.59am early on Saturday morning on Moorhead Lane in Shipley at the junction with Beechwood Grove.
Officers found a blue Renault Captur, which had been travelling towards Saltaire, had collided with a wall.
The driver, a 34-year-old man from Bradford, was treated at the scene but pronounced dead a short time later.
Officers continue to investigate the cause but it is understood the road was not icy at the time of the incident.
Tens of thousands of homes have been without power across the UK, with 4,000 homes affected in the Midlands, south-west England and South Wales and 27,000 customers affected in the North East, Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire.
Ross Easton, of Energy Networks Association (ENA), which represents the UK’s power network operators, said: “Forecasters are describing this as a ‘multi-hazard event’ with the worst of the weather yet to arrive, and so our members have extra engineers and contact centre teams available, and control rooms are monitoring the storm closely as it develops.”
National Highways issued a severe weather alert for up to five hours of heavy snow in Yorkshire and north-east England, while rail services across the UK are facing cancellations and delays. On the south coast, gusts of over 70mph are forecast as the storm intensifies.
Travel is widely disrupted with roads closed and some train routes cancelled throughout Saturday with rail companies urging passengers to avoid travelling to certain areas.
Flights were also disrupted at Newcastle Airport as the storm brought heavy snow to the North East.
The live arrival board shows flights diverted to Belfast and Edinburgh.
The airport posted on X: “Due to Storm Bert, the airport has had continuous, heavy snow this morning.
“Our snow team is operational and are working hard to keep any disruption to a minimum and we will provide a further update later this morning.
“Passengers are advised to visit our website for the latest flight information and to contact their airline directly if they have any queries.”
Winds of up to 68mph were recorded and 13cm of snow fell in some parts of the country on Saturday morning, a Met Office spokesperson said, while 12 flood alerts are in place across the UK.
The Met Office has issued an amber warning for snow and ice for parts of Scotland and northern England, with a “good chance some rural communities could be cut off”.
Amber warnings mean there is the potential for risk to life and property.
“Travel delays on roads are likely, stranding some vehicles and passengers” the national weather service said.
The amber alert for heavy snow and ice is in force between 7am and 5pm on Saturday in areas across Scotland, where 10-20cm is likely on ground above 200 metres and potentially as much as 20-40cm on hills above 400 metres.
The warning covers parts of Angus, Perth and Kinross, Stirlingshire, Aberdeenshire and some of the Highlands, Argyll and Bute, the Borders, Dumfries and Galloway, East Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire.
⚠️ Yellow weather warning UPDATED ⚠️
— Met Office (@metoffice) November 23, 2024
Strong winds associated with #StormBert across southern parts of England and Wales
Saturday 0900 – Sunday 2100
Latest info 👉 https://t.co/QwDLMfS950
Stay #WeatherAware⚠️ https://t.co/IZQ1taz36M pic.twitter.com/Xz9AMHElx2
Yellow wind, rain and snow warnings cover much of the rest of the UK on Saturday and into Sunday.
Met Office meteorologist Craig Snell said the effects of the storm would continue throughout the weekend.
“We expect the worst of the snow to pass by 12pm in Yorkshire but there will be some heavy rain and travelling conditions throughout the day will be pretty poor,” he said.
He told the PA news agency there was 13cm of snow measured in Leek in Staffordshire on Saturday morning and 68mph winds in Brixham, Devon.
“As milder weather comes in snow will melt, leading to pretty hazardous conditions,” Mr Snell said.
The #A628 is closed in both directions between the #A616 #Hollingworth and the #A57 #Flouch due to snow.
— National Highways: Yorkshire (@HighwaysYORKS) November 23, 2024
Please take care on approach and consider alternative routes where possible. pic.twitter.com/G5vqyhYPAR
A spokesperson for UK Power Networks said: "We are currently monitoring the weather closely and are in regular contact with the Met Office as the forecast develops.
"Our electricity network is built to be resilient but extreme weather can affect overhead power lines. We urge the public to stay well clear from power lines and anyone spotting a damaged power line should report it to us immediately.
"We have additional staff on duty covering operational, technical and call centre roles. As always our priorities in these situations are public safety and restoring supplies to customers as quickly and safely as possible.
"We also provide free extra help to people living in vulnerable circumstances, who are on our Priority Services Register."
