Cold weather alert: UK stays in grip of big freeze

The UK will be in the grip of the big freeze at least until Saturday with the weather set to get even colder through the rest of the week, the Met Office has warned.

Forecasters told Yahoo! News on Tuesday that the severe weather warning has been upgraded to level three as temperatures are set to plummet to a bitter -10°C by Friday, some 11°C colder than Reykjavik in Iceland.

During the middle of the week, the mercury will plunge to as low as -8°C in the north and -6°C in the south at night – with forecasters warning of treacherous driving conditions.

While most parts of the UK are due to remain dry and bright, there is a risk of scattered snow showers along the east coast on Wednesday and Thursday.

Friday is set to be the coldest day of the winter so far with highs of just 2°C by the end of this week.

The same high pressure system now covering the UK has resulted in sub-zero temperatures and heavy snow in Eastern Europe following a period of mild weather.

So far, 36 lives have been claimed in the region as temperatures reached -16°C during the day and -26°C at night in some parts of Poland, the Czech Republic, Serbia, the Ukraine and Romania.

[See also: In photos: Britain in the snow]

Speaking with Yahoo! News, Met Office forecaster Dan Williams said: “The UK has become a bit of battleground – with a warm weather front sweeping off the Atlantic meeting colder air from the continent. There is a risk of snow if the two interact, but at the moment, there is uncertainty as to which weather system will dominate and where.”