Storm Bert: Second named storm of season to bring snow, rain and 70mph winds to UK at weekend
The Met Office reports that the season's second storm is set to bring snow, rain, and gale-force winds to various regions in the UK this weekend.
Many schools are shut down as the storm, called Bert, approaches, bringing icy temperatures and snowfall this weekend.
Certain regions may experience wind gusts reaching speeds of 70 mph, along with possible flooding and interruptions in travel.
The Met Office also mentioned that heavy snowfall may cause additional disruptions in certain areas, and significant rainfall is expected over the weekend.
Areas in southwest England, such as Plymouth and Exeter, are facing a yellow weather warning for snow until 3 PM today. It is expected that higher elevations in Dartmoor could see between 5 to 10 centimeters of snow.
Snowy conditions will persist in various regions of the UK on Thursday and Friday. There are alerts for snow and ice affecting large areas of Scotland, northern England, and some parts of western and eastern England and Wales from noon today until 10 AM tomorrow.
Matthew Lehnert, the chief meteorologist at the Met Office, mentioned that a flow of cold air from the north will continue to bring snow showers to Scotland in the coming days. This could occasionally affect lower areas, possibly leading to travel difficulties.
Temperatures at night are expected to fall below freezing in many areas over the coming days. This has led to several ice warnings being issued, and we may see more alerts throughout the week.
Today, over 114 schools in the Highland Council area are closed because of snow. This includes the Inverness Royal Academy, where students were informed that their preliminary exams scheduled for today will be postponed.
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Nearly 40 schools in Aberdeenshire are closed, with several others starting their day later than usual. In Moray, about 12 schools have shut down, while others also opened later.
This follows the closure of over 100 schools and nurseries across Scotland yesterday due to the weather conditions.
Today, 89 schools in Devon were closed, along with 18 in Dorset and 60 in Cornwall. In Wales, around 10 schools were shut in Conwy, 18 in Denbighshire, and 2 in Wrexham.
As Storm Bert approaches the UK, regions in the south and west that are under warning can expect significant rainfall on Saturday and Sunday.
This weekend, the area is anticipated to receive between 50 and 75 mm of rain, while Wales and the southwestern part of England might experience over 100 mm.
A yellow weather warning has been issued for significant snowfall on Saturday, which will be followed by a quick melting and rain later that night in northeast and northwest England, the West Midlands, Yorkshire, and large areas of Scotland.
Dan Holley, the Deputy Chief Meteorologist at the Met Office, stated, "Storm Bert is bringing in significantly warmer air, and the wintry risks will slowly decrease throughout the weekend. However, we anticipate heavy snowfall in certain areas of northern England and Scotland on Saturday, particularly in elevated regions, and we have issued warnings for these conditions."
