Icy conditions in Cumbria are set to continue as the Met Office issues a yellow warning for the county.

Sub-zero temperatures overnight into this morning has already forced the closure of several roads around Cumbria.

The spell of cold weather will carry on and the Met Office's warnings comes into force at 4pm this afternoon and runs until 11am tomorrow morning.

A Met Office spokesman said: "Ice is expected to form on some surfaces from late Tuesday afternoon and last overnight into Wednesday morning.

"The chance of this is highest across parts of Scotland and northern England where rain may fall onto frozen surfaces.

"A few centimetres of fresh snow are also likely on high ground, mainly across Scotland and northern England."

They also warn that there could be icy stretches on untreated roads, pavements and cycle paths with some injuries possible from slips and falls.

The warning is in place for much of the north west of England and Scotland, but doesn't include a section of west or south Cumbria.

As the temperature drops blocks of ice have been spotted formulating in the river Esk in Longtown.


Disruption in Cumbria

People across the county woke up to heavy ice on the county's highways networks this morning, which forced the authorities to shut a number of roads.

Temperatures in most areas again did not rise above freezing but it is not believed to have been as cold a night as Sunday into yesterday morning. Find out exactly how low temperatures got in Cumbria here.

The roads shut currently are:

  • Buttermere - Newlands Pass. Newlands Pass closed due to ice between Buttermere and Braithwaite
  • Ennerdale Bridge - Cold Fell Road. Cold Fell Road closed due to ice between Ennerdale Bridge and Calder Bridge
  • Eskdale - Hardknott Pass. Hardknott Pass closed due to ice between Eskdale and Little Langdale
  • Corney - Corney Fell Road. Corney Fell Road closed due to ice between Corney and Duddon Bridge

One school in the county is shut - St Bega's Primary School in Holmrook - because of ice. Staff have made the decision due to solid ice on playground and access routes.

Also, Carlisle United's FA Cup clash at Brunton Park tonight has been postponed because of a frozen pitch.

As usual Cumbria Police is urging motorists to drive with caution today.


National

Elsewhere, Britain had its coldest night of the year as vast swathes of the country fell below freezing - with -13C (8.6F) recorded in Shropshire.

Clear skies overnight saw temperatures plummet below the -12.4C (9.6F) low recorded on Saturday night - with the Met Office recording a new low in Shawbury, north east of Shrewsbury.

Met Office meteorologist Craig Snell said: "It's still possible that it could go lower but in Shawbury we saw -13C (8.6F) which is the coldest night of the year so far.

"We have to go back to the night of February 13/14 last year when we saw -14.1C (6.6F) in Braemar for the coldest before that.

"Benson saw -9C (15.8F) and Kew Gardens in London had -4.2C (24F) and Teddington saw -4.8C (23F)."

He added that there was the potential for a "dusting" of snow on higher levels over coming days, and that there was a risk of problems caused by rain falling in already icy areas.

"It will take a good few days for the snow to melt away," he added.