An “exceptionally rare” weather alert in place across Tayside and Fife has been lifted – however the “Beast from the East” is now expected to endure until Monday.
The Met Office red snow warning was valid from 3pm on Wednesday until 10am on Thursday and told locals to prepare for “extreme” weather which could cause a risk to life.
However an amber one will remain in place across almost all of Tayside and Fife until Friday morning with “frequent and heavy snow showers” expected to bring “significant accumulations” until it expires.
A Met Office yellow warning for snow is also in place from Friday morning until midnight on Saturday.
And now another one for snow and ice is in force in Courier Country from Sunday morning right through to Monday at midnight.
The white stuff is predicted to land in Courier Country into the weekend with public transport and road disruption expected.
The fresh Sunday to Monday yellow warning states: “Frequent snow showers could continue to feed in from the North Sea on a cold easterly wind. Due to the nature of showers, some places are expected to receive an additional 2-5 cm (0.8in-2in) of snow, whereas other places nearby might receive little or no snow.
“In some coastal areas, showers will probably begin to turn to rain and sleet, with the largest accumulations of snow inland. This warning has been updated to extend it into Monday and to include the risk of icy stretches.”
Hundreds of schools across Scotland have been closed due to the conditions, with flights in and out of the country’s three major airports brought to a standstill.
Drivers had to spend the evening in their vehicles on the M80 after the road became gridlocked, and roads in Courier Country have also been affected.
Spokesman for the Met Office Grahame Madge said the amber warning area could experience “very significant disruption” with power supplies and mobile phone coverage at risk of going down.
https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/news/local/perth-kinross/609656/local-roads-closed-left-impassible-snow-hits-tayside-fife/
He said: “We have an amber warning out which is in force currently, it expires at 6pm on Thursday evening. It is for frequent and heavy snow showers feeding in off the North Sea.
“There is the potential for disruption to power supplies and mobile phone networks and of rural communities being cut off.
“We are looking at between 5cm-10cm (2in-3.9in) of snow, expected quite widely. Some areas up could see up to 40cm (15.7in).”