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Boxing Day snow: Weather warnings issued by Met Office

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Severe weather warnings of more than 10cm (4in) of snow have been issued by the Met Office for 26 December.

It says rain, sleet and snow is set to spread east across parts of Northern Ireland, England and Wales, before clearing in the evening and overnight.

The Met Office says there is a risk of several centimetres of snow even at low levels, and roads could turn very icy.

The yellow warning - meaning "be aware" - is in place from 11:00 on Friday until 06:00 on Saturday.

The Met Office said a depression developing over the Atlantic was expected to track east and then south-eastwards across the southern half of Britain during Friday.

Snow is expected to the north of this depression, and heavy rain to the south.

The Met Office said: "There remains much more uncertainty than average regarding the track of this depression which in turn leads to uncertainty about the location of the heaviest precipitation and how much snow there will be. Where snow does occur accumulations of 2cm to 4cm are likely even to lower levels and in excess of 10cm possible."

BBC weather presenter Louise Lear said: "The most important thing to point out to people is that there's going to be a lot of surface water spray, strong winds, heavy rain, poor visibility out on the roads, and there's the potential for some snow in there. It's December, let's not get too carried away by this, but nevertheless it's something to bear in mind if you're going to be leaving, or visiting friends and family."

Forecasters have warned of freezing temperatures in the days leading up to New Year.

The Met Office said there was an 80% chance that conditions could "increase the health risks to vulnerable patients and disrupt the delivery of services".

Earlier, Christmas travellers were warned to be prepared for ice and snow across large areas of Scotland.

The Met Office issued warnings of ice developing on Christmas morning after showers and snow and sleet on 26 December.

The cold snap is expected to affect the north east initially before spreading south.