Heavy snow causes widespread disruption across UK: NPR

LONDON — Heavy snow and freezing rain have caused widespread disruption across the United Kingdom, with several major airports forced to suspend flights and many key routes in northern England impassable.

With the weather expected to remain gloomy on Sunday, there are fears that many rural communities could be isolated by up to 40 centimeters (15 inches) of snow on the ground above 300 meters (985 feet).

National Grid, which oversees the country’s power grid, said it was working to restore power after outages across the country. The company’s live map shows power outages in Birmingham in central England, Bristol in the west and Cardiff in Wales.

Many sporting events have already been postponed, but the Premier League heavyweight match between Liverpool and Manchester United is still underway, although there will be another inspection later.

Liverpool John Lennon Airport and Manchester Airport have had to close runways and divert flights. Birmingham Airport also suspended operations for several hours overnight, but said on Sunday it was on schedule for “business as usual”.

The road network was also heavily affected, on what would have been a very busy day with many families returning home from the Christmas and New Year holidays and students returning to university.

In the rail sector, many services have been canceled, with National Rail warning that disruption would continue into the working week.

Britain’s main forecaster, the Met Office, has predicted that sleet and snow will continue to push northwards on Sunday and will be heaviest in northern England and southern Scotland. After experiencing freezing rain for a while, the south will become milder.

Frost and icy patches will persist through the start of the week, but Monday and Tuesday will become drier with sunny spells and scattered wintry showers.