Temperatures plummeted to -8.6C in Aberdeenshire overnight
A Met Office spokesperson confirmed temperatures plummeted to a low of -8.6C in Aboyne in Aberdeenshire overnight.
Chilly conditions were expected to continue for most of Saturday with temperatures ranging from 2-5C, with highs of 7C in south-west England.
The coldest temperature recorded in January last year was -14C, in Dalwhinnie in the Highlands.
Key events
According to the government website, the Environment Agency currently has 40 flood alerts in place across England, while Natural Resources Wales has activated another four in Wales.
Police in Wiltshire have warned people to stay off the roads and only travel if necessary as the snow continues to fall.
“The weather has turned very quickly and causing chaos all over the county, do not travel unless absolutely necessary!” the force’s special constabulary posted on X.
The A303 in Wiltshire was closed between the A338 Cholderton and A345 Amesbury in both directions due to heavy snowfall, National Highways said.
#SRSU #RoadSafety in County.
The weather has turned very quickly and causing chaos all over the county, do not travel unless absolutely necessary! Otherwise you could find yourself having a long cold night 🥶roads being closed due to amount of incidents.#snowfall pic.twitter.com/PBpG4yTZhu
— Wiltshire Specials (@wiltspolicesc) January 4, 2025
Paul Follows, leader of Waverley borough council and Godalming Town Council in Surrey, has posted this picture postcard image on X of the local town centre.
Megabus UK said its services will not serve Bristol Airport due to the weather.
DUE TO THE WEATHER ALL FALCON SERVICES UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE WILL NOT SERVE BRISTOL AIRPORT. WE WILL UPDATE WHEN IT WILL BE AVAILABLE TO SERVE AGAIN.
— megabusUK (@megabusuk) January 4, 2025
Bristol Airport suspends flights due to weather conditions
Bristol Airport is suspending its operations due to the weather.
A spokesperson for the airport said their teams are “working hard on snow clearing but challenging weather means that flight operations have been suspended until later tonight”.
Some flights scheduled to arrive at the airport have been diverted and are heading to Birmingham, Cardiff and Belfast.
The airport said earlier that snowfall could result in delays to flights and advised customers to contact their airlines directly.
Power cuts across England and Wales
The National Grid said there were a number of power cuts where it was working to restore power across the Midlands, south-west England and South Wales on Saturday evening, including in Birmingham, Bristol and Cardiff.
There is currently a #powercut in #Bristol #BS40 & surrounding areas. We are working on the issue and, we estimate to have the power restored by 20:30. Owen
— National Grid UK Customers (ex-WPD) (@gridcustomersuk) January 4, 2025
There is more of the same wintry weather in store for the UK on Sunday, the Met Office said.
Police rescued all of the occupants of six cars that were stuck on a mountain pass in the Lake District.
Officers covering the Eden district said they were sent from Penrith to assist colleagues from Kendal after six vehicles became stuck on the icy Wrynose mountain pass.
Eden Police wrote on Facebook on Saturday evening: “Eden NPT deployed from PENRITH to WRYNOSE PASS to assist Kendal officers in response to 6 vehicle stuck on ice, we safely conveyed the occupants down the pass. WRYNOSE PASS and HARDKNOTT PASS are now closed owing to the conditions, please drive safely as there is a current amber weather warning for snow and ice across CUMBRIA.”
Here is the Met Office’s latest radar showing a mixture of rain, sleet and snow moving into southern parts of England and Wales.
A mixture of rain, sleet and snow is now moving into southern parts of England and Wales. An amber snow & ice warning is now in force 🟠❄️
Here’s the latest radar 👇 pic.twitter.com/tIQnElpJjS
— Met Office (@metoffice) January 4, 2025
National Rail has reported a landslip in Gobowen, a village in Shropshire, therefore trains running between Shrewsbury and Chester may be cancelled or delayed by up to 10 minutes up to about 9pm.
The landslip is affecting routes between Cardiff Central and Llandudno Junction/Holyhead stations, and also between Shrewsbury and Wrexham General/Chester/Llandudno.
⚠️There has been a landslip at #Gobowen, which means that some lines are blocked.
ℹ️As a result, trains running between Shrewsbury and Chester may be cancelled or delayed by up to 10 minutes.
— National Rail (@nationalrailenq) January 4, 2025
The Met Office’s amber warning for snow and ice is now in force, covering most of Wales as well as parts of the north-west, the Midlands and the south-west of England.
The warning is currently in place until midday on Sunday.
Harry Taylor
Further weather warnings have been issued for England and Scotland amid heavy snow and freezing rain that has been forecast this weekend.
A new yellow weather warning has been issued for rain, affecting Wales, north-west England, east Midlands and the west Midlands.
Meanwhile, another yellow warning was also issued on Saturday morning for eastern Scotland, including Aberdeen, Perth and Inverness. It is in place until early on Monday.
It comes as a Met Office spokesperson confirmed temperatures reached a low of -8.6C in Aboyne in Aberdeenshire overnight on Saturday.
Weather warnings, including two amber warnings – the second most severe – had already been put in place for Wales, the Midlands and northern England for snow and ice.
The Met Office said stranded vehicles on the roads, delayed or cancelled rail and air travel and power cuts were all likely as the country grapples with a week-long spell of wintry conditions.
There is also a “good chance” that rural communities could be cut off due to the weather, with up to 30cm of snowfall expected in some areas.
The Met Office said the rain, sleet and snow will move northeastwards across much of the UK this evening.