An amber weather warning has been issued for parts of southern Perthshire and western Fife as heavy snow hits the region.
The Met Office is warning that the wintry conditions may cause disruption across the region between 5am and noon on Friday.
The warning covers areas south of Perth on the A9 corridor and western Fife towards Kincardine.
It comes after a yellow alert was issued at the start of the week, running from 6am until 9pm on Friday.
The region has been covered with a blanket of snow and ice throughout the week with temperatures dipping as low as -15°C in rural areas.
Forecast for Friday
The Met Office forecast for Tayside and Fife says that there will be accumulations of snow, especially over higher ground.
It will turn to rain or sleet at lower levels through the afternoon with Angus mainly becoming dry, and highs of 3°C.
It will be cloudy on Friday night with further showers, which will be wintry in the east, and temperatures dipping to -3°C.
Saturday’s forecast
The Met Office forecast for Saturday says: “Cloudy with some showers over Stirlingshire and Perthshire, wintry on the hills.
“Mainly dry in the east with bright intervals. Maximum temperature 3°C.”
Outlook for Sunday to Tuesday
Rain, sleet and snow are expected on Sunday during the yellow warning.
The snow will become confined to higher ground but “significant” snowfall and drifting is possible for a time.
Conditions are expected to become much milder on Monday with highs in some places of up to 12°C and some rain.
The latest wintry conditions come after warnings for people not to walk on frozen lakes and ponds following the deaths of four boys in Solihull on Sunday.
The Courier has seen several reports of youngsters playing on frozen waterways, including on Trottick Ponds in Dundee.
Perth school’s warning over kids on frozen pond
In Perth, teenagers have also been spotted playing on a pond at Bertha Park.
Stuart Clyde, head teacher of Bertha Park High School, said: “We sent a message to parents this week asking them to help us reinforce the message with their children about the danger of playing on ice.
“This was following calls from local residents who had seen pupils walking and playing on the frozen pond across from our school.
“This is incredibly dangerous, and we thank parents for support in helping us to keep their children safe by reiterating the message that they must never play on ice.”
Police and Scottish Mountain Rescue have also urged people to plan ahead before going hillwalking.
It comes after 33 deaths on Scotland’s hills between January 1 and December 14 this year.
Fivefold rise in calls to Fife emergency line
Meanwhile Fife Council has seen a fivefold increase in calls to its emergency line since the cold snap began.
Diarmuid Cotter, head of customer and online services, said: “I’d like to apologise to anyone who’s been trying to contact us on our emergency out of hours line.
“We’ve been dealing with five times the normal volume of calls which are mostly related to the current cold weather.
“We have increased the number of call handlers but even with more staff we’re still unable to answer all calls as quickly as we’d like.
“If you can, please use our online form to report issues, including emergency housing repairs, at www.fife.gov.uk/report-it-online.
“By doing this, it means people who aren’t able to get online, and need urgent help, can get through to us.”
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