Forecasters confirm high chance of UK being hit by snow next week
After making it through what felt like the longest winter ever, you may have been hoping for some warmer weather now that March is here - but sadly that’s not the case just yet, with the Met Office warning that part of the UK could be hit with snow next week.
Temperatures are set to drop over the weekend, with snow falling across the Scottish mountain tops.
But into next week, an area of high pressure which is currently over Scotland is set to move west, allowing a ‘allowing a northerly airflow to sweep across the UK’.
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An ‘arctic maritime airmass’ will then bring snow showers across Northern Ireland, Scotland and the east coast of England, the Met Office has warned.
Although the snow showers are set to only impact northern and eastern areas, the whole of the UK is set to endure colder weather with many places experiencing freezing temperatures overnight.
Deputy Chief Meteorologist, Chris Almond, said: “Although we’ve moved into meteorological spring there will be a distinctly wintry feel to our weather next week.
"Very cold air will spread across the UK bringing snow showers even to sea level in the north on Monday and these snow showers could spread further south on Tuesday.
“With freezing overnight temperatures and the risk of ice it is likely, weather warnings will be issued for Monday and Tuesday once the detail of potential impacts becomes clearer, so keep an eye on the Met Office forecast.”
As a result of the dropping temperatures, the UK Health Security Agency has issued a Level 2 Cold Weather Alert for the whole of England
Dr Agostinho Sousa, head of extreme events and health protection at UKHSA, said: “During periods like this, it is important to check in on family, friends and relatives who may be more vulnerable to the cold weather, as it can have a serious impact on health.
“If you have a pre-existing medical condition or are over the age of 65, it is important to try and heat your home to at least 18C if you can.”
Looking ahead to the rest of the month the Met Office says it is less confident of its predictions, but that we could see more snow.
It warns: “Spells of rain become more likely, with a chance that some areas could see snow. Some wintry episodes could be disruptive with a combination of snow and strong winds. North-west areas of the UK have the highest chance of remaining drier than average.”
It also says that temperatures are ‘most likely to be below average overall during at least the first half of March’.
Claire Reid