'Pest from the west': snow forces schools to close in parts of UK

Hundreds of schools have been forced to close after heavy snow brought rush-hour chaos to roads across northern Wales and England.

Forecasters said up to 4 inches of snow would fall in parts of Britain as the “pest from the west” brought fresh disruption after the “beast from the east” last week.

Car crashes and other traffic problems were reported across Merseyside, Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire on Thursday morning.

The snow caused at least 130 emergency school closures in Bradford, with about 120 closed in Wales, 60 in Lancashire and dozens more from Liverpool to Calderdale and beyond.

Police in West Yorkshire warned motorists not to travel unless absolutely necessary after responding to numerous collisions by 7am, including on the M62 motorway.

A picture tweeted by West Yorkshire’s traffic police showed a badly damaged Mercedes and a warning that “even 4x4 vehicle wheels still skid on ice”.

Source: theguardian