Explainer

Further ice warnings as cold snap continues in Northern Ireland

Further yellow weather warnings for ice have been issued for Northern Ireland, as the current spell of cold weather continues.

The Met Office alert is in place across the north and east of the region from 5pm and lasts through to 10am on Friday.

Forecasters say further showers, these wintry mainly at first, will lead to icy patches developing overnight.

They say it's likely ice will form on some untreated roads, pavements and cycle paths, increasing the chance of injuries and accidents.

What's causing this cold snap?

UTV weather presenter Aisling Creevey explains: "We're firmly established in this very cold air mass.

"A lot of dry weather around, a few wintry showers along the coast, and temperatures well below freezing to start off with in the morning.

"But plenty of blue sky out there and that means when the sun goes down, temperatures are very quickly falling away.

"Another little fly in the ointment - as we head into the weekend the isobars open out and there's the possibility of seeing some very dense mist and fog patches to start Saturday morning."

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