Parts of the UK are set to feel colder than areas in the Arctic circle this week as freezing Siberian air engulfs the British Isles, bringing blizzards, snow drifts and the potential for travel disruption.
The icy blast, “the beast from the east”, has prompted the Met Office to issue yellow and amber weather warnings for snow in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland for most of the week, with strong winds expected on Thursday in the south-west.
If you have been affected by the weather you can tell us about it using our encrypted form, or by sending your pictures and videos to the Guardian securely via WhatsApp by adding the contact +44(0)7867825056.
We will feature some of your contributions in our reporting.
Though we’d like to hear from you, your safety and security is most important. When responding please make sure you put your safety and the safety of others first. Extreme weather events can be very unpredictable and carry very real risks.
Train companies including Greater Anglia and C2C warned that services will be limited from Monday due to the cold weather.
Snow showers along the east coast of England in the early hours of Monday will usher in a week of wintry weather, with the Met Office warning of delays on roads and trains and in the air across most of the UK. The alert warns there may be some power cuts and loss of mobile phone signal.
There is an increasing risk of snow showers across eastern areas on Sunday night and through Monday, with warnings for heavy snow in force - stay #weatheraware pic.twitter.com/uGcOhHHjtZ
— Met Office (@metoffice) February 25, 2018
The Met Office meteorologist Charlie Powell said: “The UK is on track for some really cold weather this week. It’s not going to be record-breaking, but it’ll be pretty exceptional – winds are going to make it feel minus 10C to minus 15C during the day.
“We will see the first signs of that tonight in the shape of snow showers working all the way down the east coast. That continues into Monday, with snow showers moving across the country during the day before reaching Wales.
“Winds are then going to strengthen and we could see some easterly gales through the eastern Channel and east Anglia by the middle of the week.”
By Tuesday, persistent snow and very low temperatures have been forecast in central and eastern parts of the UK, with amber weather warnings for snow in place for Kent and the east Midlands. Vehicles and passengers could become stranded, and rural communities could be cut off, forecasters warned.
The train company Greater Anglia said it was limiting its services from Monday in anticipation of the cold weather. Its website warned that it planned to halt its Monday night train services at 10pm. and run a limited service on Tuesday.
South Eastern urged passengers to finish their journeys before 6pm on Monday to avoid potential disruption, while Transport for London warned passengers to check ahead of their journeys as disruptions were possible on Underground and Overground services. Train operator C2C also warned of limited services, advising trips after 9pm on Monday could be altered or cancelled.
By the middle of the week temperatures will struggle to get above freezing in some places pic.twitter.com/mlspkEOUMB
— Met Office (@metoffice) February 25, 2018
The yellow weather warning for snow remains in place along the east of the UK on Wednesday, extending to Northern Ireland, with an amber warning for heavy snow from Scarborough to the top of Scotland in place along the east coast. Accumulations of more than 20cm are possible across the Britain.
“Daytime temperatures on Wednesday and Thursday will be struggling to get above freezing for most of the country,” Powell said. “By Thursday evening, there are growing signs there could be some significant snowfall across southern England. Unusually for Britain, the snow is going to be quite dry, so it will blow around and gather in drifts and we could see some blizzard conditions.
“We don’t want to scare people, but people should make sure they are prepared for some seriously cold weather.”
Snow along the north-east coast has been forecast for Thursday, while a yellow weather warning for heavy snow and wind is in place from noon in the south-east of England.
Whilst it is cold today, even colder air is going to move in from the Eurasian Arctic this week causing temperatures to drop further pic.twitter.com/F61gjBRsEP
— Met Office (@metoffice) February 25, 2018
Lows of minus 5C recorded over the weekend marked the lowest temperature in the week leading up to 1 March, the first day of spring, since 1986.
The wind chill, which could see parts of the UK feeling as cold as minus 15C, rivals the temperatures forecast for parts of northern Norway and Iceland.
The cold snap, which is expected to last into next week, has been caused by sudden stratospheric warming in the atmosphere, which has caused an unusual kink in the jet stream, bringing in freezing air from Siberia and Scandinavia.
