UK weather and travel - as it happened: Flight cancellations and lorry crashes cause misery as airports warn of more disruption

'Dangerous conditions' warning as snow and ice hit the UK

Motorists faced dangerous conditions and air travellers suffered disruption to flights after snow and ice struck parts of Britain.

Thousands of people were left without power overnight, and the Met Office warned of the risk of slips and falls on icy surfaces.

The southbound carriageway on the M1 was closed after a lorry crashed near Lutterworth, while another jack-knifed on the M5 near Gloucestershire in heavy snow.

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Birmingham Airport warned passengers flights could be affected by snow while Stansted Airport warned passengers that delays and cancellations were likely to continue as a result of the weather.

The Met Office issued a yellow warning for ice across Northern Ireland, large parts of Scotland and the north-east coast of England.

A yellow warning over snow and rain was also triggered for the Midlands, London and the South East, the North West, South West and Yorkshire and the Humber. It will remain in place until 11am on Wednesday.

Key Points

• M1 closed southbound at junction 19 after lorry crash
• Environment Agency issues 15 flood warnings across Britain
• Second crash on M1 triggers fresh lane closures
• More than 30 British Airways flights in and out of Heathrow Airport cancelled
• Dozens of flights cancelled at airports across Britain

[27 December 2017 09:19 · Adam Withnall]

Good morning everyone and welcome to The Independent's live updates as travel chaos once again strikes Britain. 

We'll be bringing you all the latest as snow and ice looks set to make it a difficult day for travellers over the festive period.

[27 December 2017 09:26 · Adam Withnall]

The M1 is closed southbound at junction 19 after a lorry crash which Leicestershire Police say was likely caused by the wintry conditions.

[27 December 2017 09:31 · Adam Withnall]

Highways England are warning drivers to avoid the A14 in both directions between the M6 and M1 due to impassable stretches of road.

[27 December 2017 09:34 · Adam Withnall]

The Met Office has said the snow and rain will ease this afternoon, but temperatures will once again dip this evening.

[27 December 2017 09:36 · Adam Withnall]

Unsurprisingly, solar currently providing 0.4 per cent of the country's energy needs...

[27 December 2017 09:43 · Adam Withnall]

An illustration of how poor the conditions on the A14 are; lorries completely stuck in the snow. Five hours and counting.

 

[27 December 2017 09:47 · Adam Withnall]

The Environment Agency has issued 15 flood warnings across Britain, meaning flooding is expected and immediate action may be required. 

[27 December 2017 09:53 · Adam Withnall]

The band of rain and snow is not expected to clear the mainland until around 7pm on Wednesday, although showers are expected to become lighter and patchy as the day progresses.

Dry, bright and breezy conditions will follow, with some wintry showers affecting the west and north of Wales and Northern Ireland.

Temperatures are expected to peak around 6C (43F) in the South West, although many places will only reach 3C (37F) or 4C (39F).

Places where snow has accumulated overnight will struggle to tip over 0C (32F), while those areas could see temperatures dip back down to minus 6C (21F) overnight on Wednesday.

Thursday will generally be drier and day with slightly less wind, although it will remain cold.

Wet and windy weather is expected to return for the weekend, raising the risk of some flooding.

[27 December 2017 09:55 · Adam Withnall]

Only one lane closed on the M1 now following a lorry crash, but still minor delays on the approach.

[27 December 2017 09:58 · Adam Withnall]

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We think the UK has it bad? The city of Erie, Pennsylvania just reportedly saw 55 inches of snow.