UK weather - as it happened: Met Office issues red severe weather warning amid travel disruption as heavy snow hits Britain

Hundreds of schools closed as conditions set to worsen

Snow falls in Shawlands, Glasgow, as wintry conditions have caused more misery for travellers overnight (Lucinda Cameron/PA Wire)

Severe weather caused major travel disruption across the UK and Ireland on Wednesday as the “Beast from the East” tightened its grip.

Road closures, stranded vehicles and cancellations were widespread due to snow and ice.

Services on trains and planes were disrupted, with travellers urged to check with their transport provider before setting off on journeys.

Rail passengers were warned to avoid travelling to or from Scotland for all of Wednesday and into Thursday.

Meanwhile, hundreds of schools across Britain were closed for a second day.

Forecasters predicted the snow and freezing temperatures would not let up any time soon, prompting the Met Office to extend some of its weather warnings.

Rail companies warned delays may continue into Friday.

British Airways said the weather was likely to continue disrupting flights throughout the week.

From Thursday, forecasters predict that another weather system, Storm Emma, will bring blizzards, gales and sleet.

Follow along for live updates

The storm, named by the Portuguese Met Service, was expected to move north through Europe and was due to hit the UK on Thursday and Friday.

Additional reporting by agencies

Key Points

• Met Office issues red severe weather warning for snow
• Hundreds of schools closed
• Heathrow flights cancelled as travel chaos continues

[28 February 2018 09:21 · Samuel Osborne]

[28 February 2018 09:32 · Samuel Osborne]

A ski centre has been forced to close because of the heavy snow.

Chatham Ski and Snowboard Centre in Gillingham, Kent, shut on Wednesday "due to weather conditions".

It said on its Facebook page: "Centre currently closed as we have an inaccessible car park and we have to be able to have emergency vehicle access and staff are struggling to get to site."

[28 February 2018 09:48 · Samuel Osborne]

The Irish Met office has issued a red warning for Dublin, Kildare, Louth, Wiclow and Meath. 

[28 February 2018 09:54 · Samuel Osborne]

Wind whipping off the North Sea blew down lamp posts and one hit a moving car in Whitley Bay, North Tyneside.

Northumbria Police said no-one was injured when it hit the passenger side of the car.

[28 February 2018 10:05 · Samuel Osborne]

The country's rail networks have been severely disrupted by the weather.

Virgin Trains said the route between Carlisle and Scotland is closed with no trains or replacement buses running, because of the weather.

Alternative rail routes between England and Scotland are also "severely disrupted".

Network Rail South East tweeted: "Our teams have been out all night but despite their efforts we do have some problems this morning. Please check before you travel today." 

[28 February 2018 10:16 · Samuel Osborne]

Almost 4,000 gritters are available to tackle the cold blast hitting the UK, according to new analysis.

Many of these vehicles can be fitted with ploughs to clear away fallen snow, but there are also 500 dedicated snow ploughs which can be mobilised to keep routes open.

The RAC Foundation, which compiled the figures, warned drivers not to expect every road to be clear of snow and ice despite the size of the fleet tackling the conditions.

The motoring research charity's analysis of DVLA data revealed there are 3,238 gritters in England, 431 in Scotland, 105 in Wales and 64 in Northern Ireland.

England also leads the way on snow ploughs with 236, compared with 72 in Scotland and 27 in Wales. There were no figures for Northern Ireland.

Regionally, Yorkshire and Humberside has the most gritters at 795, while London has the least at 42.

[28 February 2018 10:19 · Samuel Osborne]

[28 February 2018 10:32 · Samuel Osborne]

There are some incredible pictures of snowy Britain this morning. 

People walk through Helix Park near the Kelpies in Falkirk (PA)

Pedestrians cross the millennium bridge as heavy snowfall hits London (AFP/Getty) 

A woman walks her dog through snow in Sydenham Woods (Press Association)

People walk across a snowy Westminster Bridge in London (EPA) 

[28 February 2018 10:43 · Samuel Osborne]

The Met Office have issued another amber severe weather warning for snow. 

[28 February 2018 10:49 · Samuel Osborne]

An earthquake with a magnitude of 3.2 has been recorded in Cumbria, the British Geological Survey said.

It was around "about 130 times smaller" than an earthquake in parts of South Wales and south-west England earlier this month.