UK braced for coldest night time in 4 years as -20C Polar blast set to trigger journey chaos

On Jan 8, 2025

The UK is set to face its coldest night in four years as the mercury is set to plunge to -20C and the country continues to be hit by snow, blizzards, ice and floods

00:08, 08 Jan 2025Updated 00:10, 08 Jan 2025

The snowfall has already caused travel chaos this year but it looks like a cold snap could cause further travel issues (Image: (Image: Getty))

Britain is gearing up for what could be the chilliest evening since winter began, with thermometers poised to plummet down to an icy -20C on Thursday, amidst a severe weather onslaught featuring snowdrifts and floods.

People living in the Midlands faced ‘danger to life’ alerts after freezing floodwaters struck, and forecasts anticipate further icy showers that could muster additional travel turmoil.

Stark scenes from across the UK depicted a dramatic contrast: vehicles turned to icy sculptures in the Peak District and residences in Barrow upon Soar, Leicestershire, were overwhelmed by floodwaters. Tuesday heralded widespread shutdowns of roads, trains, and airports, with ongoing disruption as a new Met Office yellow warning for ice remains until Wednesday noon, joining three other warnings for ice and snow engulfing North England, Scotland, and South Coast regions.

Freezing weather in Northumberland(Image: (Image: PA))

But, as Britain hunkers down for the profound freeze not seen in four years, concerns rise for the welfare of the nation’s most vulnerable due to the impending big freeze. BBC’s very own weather pundit Simon King explained: “With clearing skies and lighter winds on Wednesday night, temperatures will drop quite rapidly below freezing.

“Across most parts of the UK there will be a hard frost with minimum temperatures getting down between -3C and -10C widely. Where there is still snow cover, it could be as cold as -14C to -16C, making Wednesday the coldest night of winter so far.

“Over the Pennines and the snow fields of Scotland, we are expecting minimum temperatures to be -16C to -20 C. It’s been a while since the mercury dropped that low – the last time was on 11 February 2021, when Braemar in Aberdeenshire recorded a nippy -23C. The last time the UK recorded a temperature that low was on 11 February 2021, when the temperature at Braemar in Aberdeenshire fell to -23C.

“While flooding and further wintry showers continue to affect parts of the United Kingdom, the cold snap will continue until the end of this week. The cold Arctic air that is currently across the UK will stick around for the rest of the week bringing some of the coldest weather of the winter so far. While widespread and hard frosts are likely overnight, daytime temperatures will stay well below average for this time of year.”

The Little Venice caravan park in Yalding, Kent, surrounded by flood water(Image: (Image: PA))

As of Tuesday evening, England is on high alert with 106 flood warnings and 202 flood alerts in place. A critical ‘danger to life’ warning has been issued for the River Soar near Barrow upon Soar, Leicestershire, prompting urgent calls for evacuation from caravan parks by the Environment Agency, reports Daily Express.

Meanwhile, amber health alerts from the UK Health Security Agency are in effect across England until Sunday noon. Snow has already started to blanket parts of the UK, with fresh snowfall seen on Tuesday in northern Scotland, Greater Manchester, Cheshire, the West Country, and some southern English regions.

The relentless rain from the start of this week continues to wreak havoc, with floods plaguing parts of Leicestershire and Lincolnshire. Upset locals can’t believe their eyes as water levels soar—49 year old Neil Monteith, who has a caravan right in the thick of it at Proctors Pleasure Park near Barrow upon Soar in Leicestershire, said: “The water is the highest I’ve seen it, I’ve never seen it this bad before.”

Meanwhile, a gobsmacked neighbour from the same area moaned: “They put in new flood defences – it used to flood all the time then it stopped, but this is unprecedented. It’s a flood plain, that’s what it’s for, but they build houses on it and nobody will acknowledge it or accept it.”

Across England, New Year’s Eve onwards has seen at least 300 properties submerged, says the Environment Agency(Image: (Image: PA))

In a tragic turn in North Yorkshire, police confirmed they found a man’s body on Monday amidst the flooding in Beal, close to Eggborough and Knottingley. Although flood warnings continue, a reprieve might be on the horizon with no further downpours expected in those areas soon.

Yet, hold onto your hats—Wednesday serves up some unruly weather through the English Channel potentially dumping rain, sleet, and even snow across southern England. Adding to concerns, Wednesday also unfurls four yellow weather warnings across the blighted UK.

Brits are bracing for further travel disruption today as the UK was slapped with multiple yellow weather warnings for snow and ice. A yellow snow and ice warning covering North and West Scotland is due to last until midday today, with the Met Office warning of potential disruptions to travel.

The UK could see temperatures plunge to as low as -20C on Wednesday night(Image: (Image: WXCHARTS))

In Northern Ireland, a similar warning will also be in place until midday. Meanwhile, the East and West Midlands, North-West England, Wales, and Yorkshire have been issued with a yellow ice warning until midday, with the Met Office warning of “some impacts to transport”.

A yellow snow warning will come into force in London, the South East, and South West England from 9am today until midnight, with forecasters warning of a “small chance” of power cuts, rural communities being cut off, and travel delays. The treacherous conditions have already forced the closure of hundreds of schools across the country, with Bradford City Council confirming that 184 schools would be shut on Tuesday.

In Lancashire, more than a dozen schools were closed, while eight schools in Northern Ireland also shut their gates. Roads and railways were also severely affected, with the A1 in Lincolnshire closed between the B6326 near Newark-on-Trent and the B1174 near Grantham, according to National Highways.

Great Western Railway announced that the line between Liskeard and Looe in Cornwall was closed due to flooding, while Manchester, Bristol and Liverpool John Lennon airports were forced to suspend flights earlier on Tuesday due to the extreme weather conditions. The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) has issued a stark call for the Government to gear up fire and rescue services for flood response after widespread deluges.

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The FBU pointed out that, unlike other parts of the UK, English fire and rescue services aren’t legally required to tackle floods, leaving them without guaranteed Government funding for flood resilience. Back in November, the FBU penned a letter to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper demanding “the UK to be made resilient to flooding with a statutory duty and investment”.

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