Met Office warns of 'thick and fast snow blizzards' as Storm Bert hits UK

Snow will hit the UK 'thick and fast' as Storm Bert takes hold this weekend. According to a Met Office forecaster, there will be 'atrocious conditions' for some parts of Britain thanks to the wintry weather.

Up to 40cm of snow could be seen over hills, with Scotland and northern England anticipated to see the brunt of the chilly conditions. Met Office meteorologist Aidan McGivern said Storm Bert's arrival was following a 'relatively quiet' night on Friday, November 22.

Temperatures dropped to about -4C across parts of Scotland and -1C in eastern England. Blizzards have been predicted and there is a risk of power outages.

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He said: "We’ll see two to four hours of heavy snow across parts of northern England and Scotland during Saturday morning. This snow will accumulate thick and fast, with five to 10cm at lower levels and as much as 20 to 40cm over hills accompanied by strong winds.

"You can expect blizzards over hills across northern England and Scotland, atrocious conditions for travelling and going over the hills and also the risk of power interruptions because of snow build up on power lines. So all in all, a multiple hazard event as we go into Saturday morning."

Mr McGivern said temperatures will rise quickly as the storm brings with it milder air from the Atlantic, resulting in a 'rapid thaw' by Saturday afternoon. He said: "The melting snow and the heavy rain could lead to localised flooding in places but the wettest spots would be Wales, in the South West, particularly over south-facing hills, that’s where we’re likely to see gales and certainly the risk of impacts from wind as well as from rain.".

A number of Met Office weather warnings are in place this weekend, with alerts for snow, rain and ice.