Southern England is bracing for up to four inches of snow today as a fresh weather warning came into force and more than 250 areas remained on flood watch.
The Met Office issued a yellow snow warning covering southern counties and parts of London from 9am until midnight today which could bring further travel disruption.
Between 0.8in (2cm) and 2in (5cm) of snow could accumulate widely and as much as 4in (10cm) over higher ground, with sleet expected in South London this evening.
Forecasters said outbreaks of sleet and snow will push in from the South West during today – although many places could see little to no snow settling, especially on roads.
Existing warnings for snow and ice covering the Midlands, North West England, North Wales, northern Scotland and Northern Ireland remain in force until midday today.
These will then be replaced by a new yellow warning for snow and ice for northern Scotland and Northern Ireland from noon today until midnight tomorrow night.
The Environment Agency had 91 flood warnings and 179 alerts in force for England today, while Natural Resources Wales imposed a further warning and four alerts.
Meanwhile hundreds of schools were closed again today due to the severe weather creating dangerous conditions, especially in West Yorkshire with 190 shut in Bradford.
Flooding also continued to impact rail services across England, including Northern trains between Doncaster and Scunthorpe; Great Western Railway between Liskeard and Looe in Cornwall and Merseyrail trains between Hooton and Capenhurst.
It comes after overnight temperatures plunged to -7.3C (18.9F) in Cumbria, with the mercury set to fall further to -12C (10F) tonight and even -20C (-4F) tomorrow night.
The coldest areas are expected to be in northern Scotland and the North of England.
The UK’s lowest temperature ever recorded was -27.2C (-17.0F) at Braemar in Aberdeenshire on January 10, 1982, and the last time the mercury fell below -20C was in February 2021 when Braemar fell to -23C (-9F).
Met Office chief forecaster Jason Kelly said: ‘Weather conditions will start to change from the South West on Wednesday, with fronts from the Atlantic bringing milder air along with moisture.
‘As this moisture encounters the cold air, snowfall is expected particularly over higher ground and away from the coast. However, there is still uncertainty about how far north these fronts will reach. They could either skirt the south or move into southern England.’
Forecasters said tomorrow and Friday will bring continued low temperatures with snow and ice warnings ‘likely to be issued as confidence in the most likely impacted areas increases’.
The Met Office added that more snow is possible on Saturday, but milder air will have moved in across much of the UK by Sunday meaning rain is more likely than snow.
Meanwhile the Environment Agency (EA) estimates that more than 41,000 properties have been protected from flooding across England since New Year’s Eve, but at least 300 properties have flooded.
Snowmelt has brought further disruption to parts of England, particularly in the Midlands, following the heavy rainfall over the New Year that saw significant river and surface water flooding across the North West of England and Yorkshire, the EA said.
Floods minister Emma Hardy said: ‘My sympathies go out to the people, businesses and communities impacted by the recent flooding across the country.
‘I want to express my heartfelt thanks for the vital work that the Environment Agency and emergency services are doing to keep people safe. People must continue to follow their advice and sign up for flood warnings.’
A danger-to-life warning was issued yesterday but later removed for the River Soar near Barrow upon Soar, Leicestershire, where people living in caravan parks were urged by the EA to act, with a large-scale evacuation needed to save lives.
Dozens of people have been rescued by firefighters across Leicestershire since Monday, Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service said.
Homeowners on Belton Road in Loughborough were stranded on the first floor of their semi-detached houses yesterday after rising water from the nearby Grand Union canal flooded the street.
It comes after Manchester, Bristol, Aberdeen and Liverpool John Lennon airports were forced to suspend flights for a period yesterday because of the conditions.
Stefan Laeger, flood duty manager at the EA, said: ‘Environment Agency teams continue to be out on the ground, operating flood defences, taking action to reduce the impact of flooding, issuing flood warnings and supporting those communities affected.
‘We urge people to remain vigilant over the next few days and advise anyone travelling to be especially careful and urge people to stay away from swollen rivers and not to drive through flood water as just 30cm (1ft) of flowing water is enough to move your car.’