Northern Ireland weather: Back-to-back Yellow Met Office weather warnings for snow and ice plunder - temperatures to fall to -5 °C tonight

According to the Met Office, the Yellow warning for Northern Ireland Snow & ice will see ‘snow and icy patches leading to some disruption to travel’.

Forecasters say the public should expect ‘some roads and railways likely to be affected with longer journey times by road, bus and train services

Probably some icy patches on some untreated roads, pavements and cycle paths’, ‘some injuries from slips and falls on icy surfaces’.

It advises there will be “showers of rain and sleet near coasts, and snow inland, will continue to affect the north and west of Northern Ireland this evening, overnight and into Thursday morning”.

"As surfaces fall below freezing, this will lead to some icy stretches on untreated surfaces, while a few cm of fresh snow could affect some areas, mainly places above about 100 metres,” it adds.

Meanwhile Met Office spokesman Oli Clayon said the “lowest temperature recorded overnight was -6.9C at Katesbridge” as “temperatures today are expected to reach a high of just 2C”.

He added that today will be a mostly dry but ‘a cold day for many with some sunshine’ but ‘there could be a few coastal wintry showers, particularly in the north, and there will be some icy patches too’.

He added: “Overnight tonight temperatures could dip to -5C and tomorrow will be very similar to today, with sunny spells and wintry showers in the north. Highs of 2C expected again”.

The latest news comes as the PSNI asked motorists to ‘take extra care on the roads this morning especially on those which may not have been gritted’.

The message from the PSNI also advises motorists to ‘clear your windscreen of ice before you set off and remember to slow down and increase the distance between you and the vehicle ahead’.

And this morning a number of schools in the north and west have announced they are closed today because of the weather.

See the NI Direct advice here

Today (January 8), according to the Met Office, Northern Ireland will see ‘a mostly dry but cold day with some sunshine, though with the chance of a few freezing fog patches in the south’.

The forecast adds there will be ‘a few coastal wintry showers’, ‘icy patches, light winds and a maximum temperature 2 °C’.

But tonight there will be, ‘still a few wintry showers in the north and down North Channel coasts, otherwise dry with some clear intervals and perhaps the odd fog patch in the south’

The forecast adds there will be a ‘minimum temperature -5 °C’.

And tomorrow (Thursday) will see ‘a few wintry showers at first in the north but otherwise dry and bright with some good sunny spells, light winds’.

The Met Office add there will perhaps be the odd freezing fog patch – and a maximum temperature of 2 °C.

Met Office Chief Forecaster, Jason Kelly, said: “With cold weather persisting across the UK this week we have a number of severe weather warnings for wintry hazards.

"Snow showers will continue to fall over Scotland, Northern Ireland and into Northern Wales and northern England too.

"Where surface water and snow freeze overnight there is a risk of ice as temperatures widely dip below freezing.

"There will however be good spells of sunshine for those away from northern coasts, though it’ll still feel cold in the northerly breeze.”

Looking forward the Met Office forecast adds that ‘Thursday and Friday will bring continued low temperatures with snow and ice warnings likely to be issued as confidence in the most likely impacted areas increases’.

It adds that ‘Fronts moving in from the southwest on Friday and Saturday bring the potential for more snow, with the possibility of further warnings’.

Deputy Chief Forecaster, Chris Almond, said: “Thursday will see another cold night, with potentially the lowest temperatures of the Winter so far, -15°C or so is possible in locations with lying snow in Scotland or northern England.

“In the early hours of Friday, a front arriving from the west will encounter the cold air in place over the UK.

"This could bring further sleet or snowfall for some regions in the south and west, as well as a risk of ice for a time as it moves north-eastwards into central parts, but the extent of this is still uncertain.”

“By Sunday, milder air will have moved in across much of the UK, meaning rain is more likely than snow as we get to the end of the weekend.

"Northern Ireland and Western Scotland are most likely to see some showery outbreaks of rain and breezy conditions through Sunday, with conditions further south and east drier and more settled.”

The forecast adds that in order to ‘keep yourself and your family safe when it is icy’ you should ‘plan to leave the house at least five minutes earlier than normal’.

And ‘if you need to make a journey on foot, try to use pavements along main roads which are likely to be less slippery’.

They further advise for the public to be prepared for weather warnings to change: when a weather warning is issued, the Met Office recommends staying up to date with the weather forecast in your area.