Amber warning for parts of NI
Winter is "still firmly in charge'', a Met Office forecaster has said as Northern Ireland prepares for another day of sub-zero temperatures, icy blasts and "blizzard-like conditions''.
Last updated 1st Mar 2018
It comes as Storm Emma, rolling in from the Atlantic, looks poised to meet the Beast from the East's chilly Russia air - causing further widespread snowfall and bitter temperatures.
The Met Office yellow alert remains in place for Northern Ireland until least Friday night. And this morning that was upgraded to parts of counties Antrim, Armagh and Down until 6pm on Thursday.
Forecaster Craig Snell said although Thursday marks the first day of meteorological spring, "winter is still firmly in charge across the UK''.
He also warned that extreme weather will grip Britain for another 48 hours.
Scotland is under a red alert - the highest level of weather warning, that is in place until 10am on Thursday with up to 40cm of the white stuff expected in some areas.
Mr Snell revealed that a red warning for snow has never before been issued for Scotland, England or Northern Ireland.
Hundreds of schools in Northern Ireland have taken the decision to close - and more are likely to follow suit. You can find a link to those affected here.
The wintry conditions are set to cause chaos on the roads today, with both the M1 and A1 down to one lane in both directions this morning. The Roads Service spokesman said:"
Salting of the scheduled road network has been ongoing throughout the night, with Snow Ploughs also operating where necessary.
"The south and east of the province are experiencing the most snow with much of the M1 and A1 currently down to one lane in each direction. Further salting and ploughing is continuing at present.
"In Counties Down and Armagh the main roads at present are passable with care, but snow is continuing to fall and conditions will possibly become more difficult as the morning commute starts.
"Motorists should exercise caution when travelling this morning as driving conditions, particularly in the South East of the province, are very difficult."
There's also disruption to public transport with Translink advising customers to check if their bus or train service is running before leaving the house. Some bus services have already been suspended, or are not running along their full routes. There's also a reduced cross-border service in operation.
On Wednesday as icy blasts gripped Britain, a man in his 60s died after being pulled from a lake in Danson Park, south east London that he had fallen into.
Firefighters also rescued a young boy who had tried to run into the middle of a frozen lake and got trapped as the ice broke up at Laindon near Basildon, Essex.
Gatwick Airport said due to the severe weather they are expecting a large number of cancellations and delays to flights''.
Advising those travelling to check the status of their flight with their airline, the airport stressed to passengers not to travel to the airport if it is cancelled''.
Edinburgh Airport also tweeted to say most airlines have cancelled their operations had cancelled flights from there until lunchtime on Thursday.
Police across the country also advised motorists to avoid driving if possible owing to poor visibility and treacherous conditions.
The Met Office said the highest temperature in the UK on Wednesday was 1.7C recorded in Katesbridge, County Down and the coldest in Braemar, Aberdeenshire at -5.3C.
Mr Snell warned: "Generally many places on Thursday will struggle to get anywhere near -1C, a few people will come up above, but many of us will be firmly below freezing."