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
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Your support makes all the difference.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
This is the amount of snowfall the Met Office thinks we can expect over the next three days.
↵Scotland's First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, has advised Scots to "take care" as she shared news of the red severe weather warning.
In issuing its red severe weather warning for the central belt of Scotland, the Met Office has urged people to avoid making unnecessary journeys and warned of significant disruption to travel.
The Irish Met office has expanded its red weather warning to cover much of Ireland.
Scotland's transport minister, Humza Yousaf, has reiterated his advice for people to avoid travel unless essential.
He told Sky News: "We are very clear ... avoid travel. This is the highest and most severe weather warning, it is red. It is the first time we have ever had a red weather warning for snow in Scotland.
"So it just re-emphasises that message that people should ask themselves the question 'is this journey absolutely and utterly essential?' - if not, do not travel."
He said that people should consider leaving work early if they are able to do so, because of the red warning.
He added: "Progressively the day is going to become worse with the weather challenges particularly from 3pm onwards so it is only going to get worse."
The Met Office's yellow weather warning for snow covering vast swathes of the UK has been extended until 9am on Saturday.
A crash involving three HGVs has blocked the A1 north of Alnwick in Northumberland.
No one was seriously injured but the northbound carriageway will be closed while it is cleared, Northumbria Police said.
The below picture shows conditions further south on the A1 near Peterborough this morning:
Below are some pictures showing the severity of the wintry weather in Scotland.
A central belt of the country, covering both Glasgow and Edinburgh, is under a Met Office red warning for snow for the first time. The alert is in place from this afternoon until Thursday evening.
The warning stipulates that "risk to life is likely".
Forecasters say roads are likely to be blocked by deep snow, with many stranded vehicles and passengers. Long delays and cancellations on bus, rail and air travel are expected, as are long interruptions to power supplies and other services. Some communities could become cut off for several days, the Met Office has warned.
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