A summary of today's developments
A cold weather health alert has been issued for all regions in England with large parts of the UK set to be hit by snow and freezing rain. The cold weather health alert, issued by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), lasts until midday on Wednesday. It means it is expected temperatures inside places such as hospitals, care homes and clinics could drop below the recommended levels.
Two amber weather warnings have been put in place in England and Wales. One for snow and rare freezing rain covering most of Wales and central England, including the Midlands and the north-west cities of Liverpool and Manchester, is in place from 6pm on Saturday to midday on Sunday, the Met Office said. The second, an amber warning for snow, covering most of northern England including Leeds, Sheffield and the Lake District, has been issued from 9pm on Saturday to midnight on Sunday.
Temperatures plummeted to -8.6C in Aboyne, Aberdeenshire overnight, a Met Office spokesperson confirmed on Saturday. Chilly conditions were expected to continue for most of Saturday with most places ranging from 2-5C, with highs of 7C in south-west England.
The Met Office has warned that the freezing weather could cause delays to rail and air travel, power cuts and the cutting off of rural communities, with up to 30cm of snow forecast in some areas.
Bristol Airport suspended its operations on Saturday evening for a few hours due to the weather before reopening at around 11pm.
The National Grid said there were a number of power cuts and it was working to restore power across the Midlands, south-west England and South Wales on Saturday evening, including in Birmingham, Bristol and Cardiff.
The Irish government’s emergency planning team is holding a meeting as Ireland braces for a “multi-hazard weather event”, which is due to hit the country later on Saturday. Snow, ice, heavy rain and sleet are to sweep over Ireland as a series of orange and yellow weather warnings come into effect. Met Éireann has warned that the cold snap will create difficult travelling conditions and poor visibility. Forecasters have said that depending on snow accumulations on Monday, schools could remain closed as the sub-zero temperatures stretch into next week. They have warned that it will probably lead to disruption to public transport, air, rail and bus services, difficult conditions underfoot and animal welfare issues. Taoiseach Simon Harris has urged the public to “proceed with caution” as the country faces severe weather challenges.
A status yellow ice and snow warning is in place across Northern Ireland from 9pm on Saturday until 6pm on Saturday.
A yellow warning for ice is in place for the north of Scotland from 4pm on Saturday to 10am on Sunday while a yellow warning for snow in the Shetland Islands has been issued for Saturday from 10am to 6pm.
There is also a yellow warning for rain covering much of Wales and the West Midlands on Sunday from 6am to 9pm.
The health secretary, Wes Streeting, told the BBC that “it is definitely a weekend to turn the heating on” as he defended the government’s cut to winter fuel payments, which he said had been protected for the “poorest pensioners”. The director of Age UK, Caroline Abrahams, said the government’s decision to limit the winter fuel allowance would be put “into sharp relief” by the cold snap and the charity had already been contacted by older people “worrying about what to do when this moment arrived”.
Councils have activated emergency measures, including additional accommodation to help rough sleepers stay safe during the cold snap. London mayor, Sadiq Khan, called on Londoners to look out for and help rough sleepers in the capital.
An amber weather warning for snow has been put in place for the Isle of Man from 11pm on Saturday until 3am on Monday. The Ronaldsway Met Office warns that rain, sleet and snow will arrive on Saturday night and overnight into Sunday. Overhead power line icing may be an additional hazard, it warns.
National Highways warned a “spell of disruptive snow” would spread across southern and central parts of the road network on Saturday night. Drivers in high-altitude areas, especially the Cotswolds and Peak District, were warned to take particular care. Gwent police issued a warning for black ice on Friday.
Road users in northern England’s were warned up to 25cm of snow could hit parts of the network including the A66 Old Spittal, A628 Woodhead Pass and M62 at Windy Hill.
Some football games have already been called off this weekend. They include Cheltenham’s clash with League Two leaders Walsall and Halifax’s National League home game against Fylde. It remains to be seen if Manchester United and Liverpool’s clash in the English Premier League, one of the most watched sporting events in the world, will be cancelled on Sunday.
Horse racing at Sandown Park in Surrey was abandoned on Saturday, with the racecourse saying the weather meant there “would not be sufficient time for the ground to become raceable”.
Updated
Footage shows a family walking on a moor being saved by emergency services near Greater Manchester after becoming lost in the dark.
The family are now safe and well, the National Police Air Service said.
Here you can see the moment earlier this evening that our crew talked in members of @OldhamMRT to a family lost in the dark on the moors above Dovestones Reservoir. Great team work with @gmpolice @NWAmbulance also to ensure all are now safe and well. pic.twitter.com/xtqV4EC7dP
— NPAS North West Region (@NPASNorthWest) January 4, 2025
