Yellow weather warning for wind and snow issued by Met Office

The Met Office has warned frequent heavy snow showers are expected, along with very gusty winds and a small chance of frequent lightning affecting some places.

Temperatures across Scotland and Northern Ireland are expected to drop sharply following a squally band of rain on Wednesday, with frequent heavy and blustery snow showers arriving from the Atlantic.

Away from immediate west-facing coasts, two to five centimetres, and in places seven to 10cm of snow is likely to build up, even at low levels, whereas on higher ground some places could see 20-30cm building up by Thursday morning.

The showers will be accompanied by strong, blustery winds, with gusts of 50-60mph possible, and a small chance of 70mph on coasts.

Blizzard conditions are likely over higher ground.

There is a very small chance that some of the showers could be accompanied by frequent lightning, which may could impact power supplies.

Snow showers are increasingly likely to turn back to rain and sleet at low levels later Thursday morning and early afternoon, although remaining as snow above 200-300m.

What to expect

- There is a small chance of injuries and danger to life from flying debris

- There is a slight chance of some damage to buildings, such as tiles blown from roofs

- There is a small chance of longer journey times or cancellations as road, rail, air and ferry services are affected. There is also a chance some vehicles and passengers could become stranded.

- There is a slight chance that power cuts may occur, with the potential to affect other services, such as mobile phone coverage

- There is a small chance that some roads and bridges could close

- There is a slight chance that some rural communities could become cut off