BBC Breakfast’s anchors have warned viewers to pay attention to the Met Office’s significant amber warnings for snow and ice, with disruptions anticipated today.
During this morning’s programme, Sarah Campbell and Ben Thompson concluded a segment about Britain’s ponds before segueing into forecasts of an approaching chilly weekend.
“Just wrapped up a piece about Britain’s ponds.” “There’s going to be a few frozen ponds this weekend which links us nicely to this morning’s weather.”
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“It is going to be cold for a lot of us,”, reports the Mirror. “We have got some cold weather on the way this weekend, relatively calm start to the weekend but things are going to turn quite disruptive in terms of the weather.”
The public has been advised to brace themselves for up to 14 inches of snow expected by the close of the day, after two amber warnings were issued by the Met Office.
From 6 pm to 12 pm on Sunday, a wide stretch of the UK including Gloucestershire, Wales, Birmingham, Worcestershire, and Manchester will be under an amber snow and ice warning, while another alert for snow spans from 9 pm till midnight covering Northern England.
The UK is on high alert for a frosty blast, with mercury set to plunge to a bone-chilling -5C overnight. As the freezing temperatures persist over the weekend, Sarah highlighted the cold snap, stating: “Especially later on today, so this evening and overnight too. We’ve got amber warnings that have been issued by the Met Office for snow and for ice across parts of England and Wales in particular.”
She warned of potential disruptions, specifically mentioning, “But any of us could see some snowy weather over the next couple of days but these are the areas we are most concerned about seeing disruption so across Wales and right through the Midlands, this amber warning for snow and ice is valid from 6pm today.”
Utilising the map during her briefing, she indicated areas of concern, noting: “A little bit further north (pointing to Scotland on the map) this second warning is valid for snow from 9pm today and much of northern England.”
With an emphasis on the duration of this icy period, Sarah advised the public that “the next 48 hours at least” will be particularly challenging, especially in Britain’s northern regions.
She forecasted that temperatures would likely hover around four or five degrees in most places. She then detailed the expected snowfall, revealing: “There could be 30cm of snow totting up in the Peak District and northern parts of the Pennine, up to 40cms on top of the higher ground.”
She also cautioned that “Even at lower ground levels we should expect to see around three to seven centimetres of snow.”
Sarah expanded on the forecast, saying: “So a cold start again for many of us tomorrow but much much milder towards the south so that snow will quickly turn back to rain across southern parts across England and Wales.”
She finished by urging everyone to stay informed: “Keep yourselves up to date with all the latest warnings. You can find the details on our website or by downloading the BBC weather app.”
Responding from the studio, her co-star Ben said: “Really useful advice Sarah, thank you.”