Hundreds of motorists are trapped on North Yorks moors as blizzards leave roads impassable and temperatures plunge in -11C Arctic snap
In North Yorkshire, hundreds of motorists were caught in dire conditions after an Arctic blast blanketed the region in heavy snow and caused temperatures to drop to -2C.
According to AA Traffic News, traffic came to a halt on the A171 motorway near Whitby, Yorkshire, as traffic became impassable due to snow.
Footage posted online showed long queues of vehicles forming along the whitewashed route, prompting police to warn drivers to avoid the road.
A lorry was also seen stuck on the A169 near Fylingdales, prompting police to divert traffic through Scarborough.
The outage comes ahead of a yellow weather warning covering parts of the North York Moors and Yorkshire Wolds between 3am and 9pm tomorrow, with up to 25cm (10in) of snow expected.
After 7cm (2.7in) of rainfall was concentrated in parts of the UK overnight, showers continue to lash coastal areas across the country, triggering yellow warnings in East Anglia, the South West, Wales, North East England, Northern Scotland and Northern Ireland.
A photo shared around 17:00 today shows vehicles and a truck trying to move forward under dangerous conditions.
Driver seen driving in dangerous snowy conditions
Traffic queues seen on North Yorkshire road as police urge motorists to avoid the area
The lorry stopped on the A169 near Fylingdales, prompting police to divert traffic through Scarborough
A post on the Facebook page North Yorkshire Weather Updates said: ‘Thankfully at 5pm a number of vehicles managed to leave onto the A171 Birk Brow area between Guisborough and Whitby.
‘But conditions remain difficult and vehicles are still stranded half an hour later.’
North Yorkshire Police said: ‘Please avoid the A171 towards Guisborough near Whitby and across the moorland; Many vehicles are stranded due to weather conditions.
‘The A174 from Whitby might not be bad now. If you have any doubts, please do not travel unnecessarily. Stay safe out there.’
Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan has introduced the capital’s Severe Weather Emergency Protocol (SWEP), which provides extra accommodation for homeless people.
The plan calls for counties and homelessness agencies to open additional emergency shelters for people stranded in potentially life-threatening conditions.
SWEP, which comes into effect when temperatures drop to 0C (32F), was in place for 22 nights last winter, when London boroughs were home to more than 2,000 people.
In Scotland, dozens of schools and nurseries closed due to weather conditions; of these, 20 are in the Highland Council area, 19 in Aberdeenshire and three in Moray.
Traffic queues in snowy conditions on the A174 Boulby Bank near the North York Moors National Park
Difficult conditions for drivers prompt police to warn motorists
A person walking his dog in the snow in Tow Law, County Durham, this morning
Snowplow on the A9 near Blair Atholl in Scotland today as weather warnings remain in place
A train plows through the snow near Northolt, west London, this morning
A person runs as snow begins to fall near Windsor Castle in Berkshire this morning
More snow is expected along the coast of northern Scotland and the east and west coasts of England on Wednesday night, following further snowfall this morning, the Met Office said.
Snow was seen in areas such as London, Hertfordshire, Berkshire, Surrey, Essex, Shropshire and Northumberland; Met Office weather stations at Lake Vyrnwy in Powys, Wales, recorded 7cm of snowfall by 8am.
Other weather stations reporting snow include Lerwick in Shetland; There was 5cm of snow both in the Scottish Highlands, 4cm at Loch Glascarnoch and 7cm at Altnaharra, 2cm at Aviemore, Inverness-shire and 1cm at Dyce, Aberdeenshire, Drumalbin in Lanarkshire and Redesdale Camp in Northumberland.
Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan has introduced the capital’s Severe Weather Emergency Protocol (SWEP), which provides extra accommodation for homeless people.
The plan calls for counties and homelessness agencies to open additional emergency shelters for people stranded in potentially life-threatening conditions.
SWEP, which comes into effect when temperatures drop to 0C (32F), was in place for 22 nights last winter, when London boroughs were home to more than 2,000 people.
