UK weather: London wakes up to snow as 'White Thursday' prepares to wreak havoc

27 February 2020, 09:37

Britain is waking up to snow as forecasters warn White Thursday wreaking havoc.

Thousands have taken to social media to share snaps of wintery scenes this morning, with the Met Office expecting a 5cm coat in some areas.

Many on Twitter have shared excitement at flakes falling in parts of London and the south East, much of it on saturated ground.

Weather warnings for snow and ice are in force across most of England and Scotland today.
User @IrishPixel tweeted dramatic footage of snow coating parks and gardens in Cambridge, adding: “Something different today. Our first snowfall of the year!”

In Milton Keyes, one man pictured his garden blanketed in white.

Londoners are also getting excited. Wendy Boast tweeted a video of unsettled snow beginning to fall in the north of the capital.

Jayne Robinson wrote: “It's snowing North of Stratford in London! It's probably not going to stick, but I know Twitter likes to know these things.”

And in the Chilterns, north of London, one Twitter user pictured greenery blanketed in white.

Others have shared photos of a white dusting covering their cars, streets and gardens in Suffolk, Lancashire and Oldham, Greater Manchester.

Businesses and homes have been evacuated in the Midlands and Shropshire, where River Severn flood defences buckled as the deluge continues.

The Met Office has said a new weather front moving in from the South West will bring wintery weather to much of the UK today.

"Snowfall up to 5cm is possible over higher ground in South Wales, with 1-3cm possible over the Cotswolds and the Chilterns," Paul Gundersen, chief meteorologist at the agency, said.

"It is possible that rain may briefly turn to sleet or snow over lower ground across the Midlands, East Anglia and areas north of London, although accumulations here are likely to be small."

Other areas in Wales and Northwest England still reeling from a battering by Storm Dennis are also set to be hit with between 40mm and 60mm of rain, bringing further chaos on the banks of the River Severn where flood defences have already failed.