Storm BART hits the UK as snow closes roads and railways | UK Weather

Storm Bart is expected to hit the UK, with snow blocking roads and heavy rain and winds causing further traffic disruptions and the potential for flooding.

Weather warnings and 13 flood alerts are in place for much of the country, with ice outbreaks reported in parts of Scotland, parts of Yorkshire and north-east England. Most of the rest of the UK will remain under a yellow warning for wind, rain and snow until Sunday.

Flight operations at Newcastle Airport are disrupted due to heavy snowfall. A number of flights scheduled to depart on Saturday were delayed, and a 9.30am British Airways flight to Heathrow was canceled, according to the airport's online departure board.

The airport posted on X: “Heavy snow continues to fall at the airport this morning as a result of Storm Bart. Our snow teams are active and working hard to minimize disruption and will provide further updates later this morning. I plan to.”

At least 60,000 homes, businesses and farms in Ireland are without power, the Electricity Supply Board said, adding that it had mobilized staff to affected areas to deal with the outage.

Railway companies are asking passengers to avoid traveling to certain areas, and some are warning of reduced services. Highways has issued a 'severe weather warning' from 5am to 3pm on Saturday due to snow affecting Yorkshire and the north-east of England.

Highways said the A628 in Yorkshire remained closed overnight in both directions between the A616 Hollingworth and the A57 Flatch due to snow. The A66 Trans-Pennine route is closed between the A6 and M6 (J40).

Areas across Scotland are under an Amber Warning for heavy snow and ice until 5pm on Saturday, with accumulations of 10 to 20 centimeters possible on ground above 200 meters and 20 to 40 centimeters on hills above 400 metres.

The weather warning covers Angus, Perth, Kinross, Stirlingshire, parts of Aberdeenshire and the Highlands, Argyll and Bute, the Borders, Dumfries and Galloway, East Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire.

Perth's annual Christmas lights lighting event has been canceled due to safety and travel concerns.

A second Amber Warning is in place for parts of Yorkshire and north-east England until midday on Saturday. Meanwhile, a yellow warning for wind, rain and snow is in place for wider areas of these areas until 9am on Sunday.

Met Office meteorologist Aidan McGivern said: “Heavy snow is expected to fall for two to four hours across northern England and parts of Scotland on Saturday morning.

“This snow accumulates quickly and thickly, reaching 5-10 centimeters in low areas and 20-40 centimeters on hills in strong winds.

“Blizzards are forecast for the hills of northern England and Scotland, with severe conditions expected for travel and movement in the hills, and the risk of power outages due to snow accumulating on power lines.

“So it's a multi-hazard event heading into Saturday morning.”

He said that as the storm brought in calmer air from the Atlantic, temperatures would rise quickly, resulting in a “rapid snow melt” by the afternoon.

“Snowmelt and heavy rain may cause localized flooding in some places, but the wettest areas will be in south-west Wales, particularly in south-facing hills, where strong winds are likely. “There is a strong risk of flooding and there is definitely a risk of flooding,” the meteorologist said.

Widespread areas of Wales and south-west England could see up to 75mm of rain over the weekend, with more than 100mm of rain possible in the highlands of south Wales and Dartmoor.

Strong winds are expected to blow along the south coast, with gusts exceeding 110 km/h in some places.

A gale warning has been issued across Scotland from 5am to 7pm on Saturday.

Rain and snow warnings are in place for the north of England until 9am on Sunday, and in Northern Ireland until 11am on Saturday. A rain warning was in place for most of Wales until 6am on Sunday and south-west England until 11.45pm on Saturday.

A wind warning was also issued for coastal areas of southern England from 9am to 9pm on Sunday.

ScotRail has suspended services from Inverness to Elgin, Aberdeen to Inverurie and Glasgow Queen Street to Oban, with trains from Glasgow Central to Carlisle terminating in Dumfries.

South Western Railway has asked passengers to only travel west of Basingstoke if it is essential. It said services between Exeter and London Waterloo would start and end in Basingstoke. Travel times will be longer between Salisbury and Exeter and between Bournemouth and Weymouth due to speed restrictions. In addition, due to safety inspections, services across the network will be slower than usual on Sundays and Mondays.

TransPennine Express on Saturday “strongly” urged customers not to travel north of Carlisle, while Avanti West Coast advised passengers not to travel north of Preston, including Lancaster, Oxenholme, Penrith, Carlisle, Glasgow and Edinburgh. Advised not to travel.