People in Gloucestershire and Dartmoor wake up to snow

Snow on Minchinhampton Common
Children enjoying the snow on Minchinhampton Common. Credit: ITV West Country

Snowfall has hit some parts of the West Country which are gripped by a cold snap following days of stormy conditions.

The Met Office, which has yellow weather warnings for snow and ice in place across much of the country, described it as "a cold and frosty start" to Bank Holiday Monday.

Heavy snowfall prompted Gloucestershire Police to warn members of the public to take care and to "only go out if it is essential to do so".

The force tweeted: "Heavy snow is starting to fall in the rural parts of the county.

"This will cause delays on the roads.

Make sure you plan your route and have everything you may need in an emergency including a fully charged mobile phone."

The yellow warnings from the Met Office advise of the potential for injuries from icy surfaces and delays to trains and road transport.

With another cold day in store on Tuesday, the Met Office also issued a yellow weather warning for snow and ice as icy surfaces may form across parts overnight.

Treacherous conditions were predicted if thawing snow turns to ice.

Covid-19 regional restrictions mean that roads are quieter than normal, but any drivers were being urged to be prepared.

Snow at the Forest of Dean Credit: Patrick James

Ben Sheridan, of the AA, said: "Thawing snow, rainfall and freezing temperatures overnight lead to challenging driving conditions, with roads likely to be icy in the morning."

There is also a risk widespread ice could form on untreated surfaces as the rain and snow clears on Wednesday night.

It comes after days of wintry weather over the Christmas period which brought flooding to parts of the west country before Storm Bella arrived on Boxing Day with winds of nearly 80mph.

Foggy driving conditions at Lansdown, Bath Credit: ITV West Country

ITV West Country weather presenter Charlie Powell says there's more cold weather to come; "We're going to hold onto similar weather this week with northerly winds feeding in cold air and areas of cloud and rain moving in from the Atlantic.

"It'll be a tricky few days of forecasting but the next bit of snow we could see will be during Wednesday into Thursday, away from the coasts but not just over hills.

"Met Office warnings are in force to cover this.

Children enjoy sledging on Minchinhampton Common Credit: ITV West Country

"As well as snow the low temperatures also mean a risk of ice at night, so there's plenty of wintry weather on offer as we head into the New Year."

Flooding has also continued to cause disruption to train services.

Buses have been running instead of trains on Great Western Railway between Westbury and Bath Spa as well as between Exeter St Davids and Taunton.


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