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Overnight snowfall hits parts of UK as further wintry weather forecast

Owen Humphreys

By PA Reporter

Parts of Britain woke up to snowfall overnight and a warning that further wintry weather may be on the way.

The Met Office said that wet snow fell on Friday morning across parts of Kent which may spread northwards with some snow over the Wealds and Downs of south-east England.

Rain, sleet and snow is also expected across a broad swathe of Scotland and northern England.

It was the coldest night of autumn/winter so far, with -9.6C (14.72F) recorded at Altnaharra, Sutherland, in the Highlands, according to the Met Office.

The coldest night of the year is still -10.2C (13.64F) recorded at Braemar in Aberdeenshire on February 13.

A Met Office weather warning for snow and heavy rain through to Friday at 10am was issued for the east of England plus London and the South East.

It warned of heavy rain and snow that could lead to tricky travel due to surface water and “possible slushy accumulations”.

It added: ” In a few places 1-2cm of snow could accumulate, mainly on grassy surfaces over the North Downs and Chilterns”

A number of yellow warnings for ice and snow are in place across large areas of Scotland and Northern Ireland and stretch down into North Yorkshire which suggest possible travel disruption.

Snow in parts of Scotland left motorists tackling difficult driving conditions while there were also reports of “thundersnow” in some areas.

The Queensferry Crossing was closed to vehicles in both directions due to the weather, including falling ice and snow, while in the North East police warned of dangerous driving conditions on the A93 and the B993.

Rail passengers are also affected, with ScotRail warning of “significant disruption to services on multiple routes” due to heavy snow.

Police Scotland Control Rooms said it had received a number of calls from people who were concerned after they heard explosions and strange noises.

Police Scotland Control Rooms tweeted on Friday at about 5am: “Please do not be alarmed, we are currently experiencing thunder and lightning.”

Met Office meteorologist Aidan McGivern described early Friday as being that “awkward mixture of cold rain, sleet and falling snow” for many areas of Britain.

The Met Office said the cold spell is expected to last through to Friday but that the weekend would see brighter weather and even some sunshine.

It added that temperatures going into next week would be lower than the average annual temperature, which is usually about 7C (44.6F) to 9C (48.2F).