UK frozen with ice and snow, here’s how long the cold blast will last

The UK woke up this morning to widespread ice and snow. People are working from home if they can and being warned not to make this expensive mistake if they do decide to drive in these chilly conditions. The Met Office has issued 2 days’ worth of weather warnings. Today, on Thursday 18 January, there is even a rare amber warning in place for parts of the UK that are set to see a substantial amount of snow.

Here’s what the weather warnings are saying about what we can expect over the next 48 hours, and how long this cold blast will last.

Weather warnings in UK

Met Office forecaster Simon Partridge explained that ‘Tuesday night was the coldest night of this winter, and Wednesday night actually comes in as the second coldest night of the winter so far’. A rare amber warning has been issued for the Shetland Islands and far north of Scotland due to snow. The warning is in place from 3PM to 6PM today, and Partridge said ‘we're going to see more snow showers there. But also some pretty brisk winds, so there will be a lot of blowing snow’. This means ‘travel in particular will be quite difficult in that part of the world’.

Yellow warnings are also in place, covering much of the UK. Snow and ice is set to hit Northern Ireland, northern and western Scotland, and parts of Wales. The whole eastern coast of England has also been issued a yellow warning, which stretches all the way down to the south. For northern Scotland and Northern Ireland, the warnings will remain in place until Friday.

How long will the cold blast last?

According to the BBC, ‘the icy winds blowing in from the Arctic have seen temperatures fall 5C (41.0F) to 6C (42.8F) below the average for this time of year’. However, we are soon to see a shift in the weather.

The weekend is expected to be milder, but unfortunately this does not mean we can look forward to good weather. ​​Deep areas of low pressure are set to move in, bringing stormy conditions to the UK. Indeed, another weather warning has been issued for Sunday. This time, it’s for high winds and covers Northern Ireland, Scotland and much of England’s western coast.

Wrap up warm and turn your heating up - we are set for a few more days of this cold snap!

Read more:

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Sources used:

BBC: UK weather: Warnings in place after sub-zero temperatures across country

Met Office: UK weather warnings

The Guardian: Why is it so cold in the UK right now – and how long will Arctic chill last?