24 Mar 2013

Heavy winds and snow batter UK

9:31 am on 24 March 2013

Unseasonal cold weather has hit much of the United Kingdom with high winds and heavy snow.

Tens of thousands of households are without electricity and transport has been disrupted.

A number of roads and airports were closed, with some motorists trapped in their vehicles overnight and many weekend sporting fixtures affected.

A Met Office warning of snow includes Northern Ireland, much of England, northern Wales and south-west Scotland.

Motorists were stuck in their cars overnight in Dumfries and Galloway and 35,000 homes in Northern Ireland are without electricity, the BBC reports.

The body of a 27-year-old man has been found in deep snow by a farmer in Lancashire. Police said he had been walking home after a night out with friends.

In the south of England, heavy rainfall has caused flooding, and one person has been killed in a landslide.

Saturday's severe weather follows snowfalls across parts of the United Kingdom on Friday which also led to the closure of hundreds of schools.

The continuing wintry weather has seen snow falling across central and northern parts of the country and spreading to parts of south and south-east England.

Forecasters warn temperatures would struggle to get above freezing on Sunday in many central areas, and next week was expected to be very cold with snow showers likely.