“WARNING: A devastating blizzard is expected to hit within the next few hours; residents in the following counties are urged to take immediate action.”

The Met Office is warning of possible injuries and even danger to life in parts of the country as Storm Goretti reaches Britain.

‘Relentless’ snow in parts of UK

The Met Office has issued weather warnings for snow across the UK as Storm Goretti closes in on Britain.

Yellow snow warnings now cover huge swathes of East Anglia, the Midlands, the North, and the South West, as well as almost all of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

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A more severe amber snow warning has also been issued for much of central Wales, the Midlands, and parts of the North, with up to 30cm of snow predicted.

Image:A weather warning map for 8 January. Pic: Met Office

In affected areas, the Met Office is warning drivers could become stranded, while rail and air travellers face likely cancellations and delays.

Rural communities could find themselves cut off as well, with power cuts likely and possible disruption to other services, including mobile phone networks.

Another amber warning has been issued in Cornwall, where the Met Office is predicting winds of up to 90mph, and warning that “flying debris is likely”, which “could lead to injuries or danger to life”.

Buildings could be damaged too, the agency predicts, with large waves threatening further injuries and risk to life along coastal roads and seafronts.

Met Office chief forecaster Neil Armstrong described Storm Goretti as a “multi-hazard event” with heavy rain, strong winds and snow.

His colleague, meteorologist Alex Burkill, warned that 20cm or more of snow could settle – “enough to cause some severe disruption”.

“We are likely to see some fairly significant snow as we go through later tomorrow and into Friday,” he said.

The villages trapped ‘for days’ by snow

Scotland remains sub-zero

In the north of Scotland, many schools remain closed for a fourth day, as efforts to recover from days of heavy snow and sub-zero temperatures continue.

Among them are more than 150 schools in Aberdeenshire, dozens in the Highlands, and a number of schools in Moray and Orkney.

It comes after 440 schools were closed on Wednesday across multiple councils, amounting to 18% of the entire school estate.

On Tuesday, Aberdeenshire Council declared a major incident, warning of possible power cuts, and that some rural communities face a “good chance” of being cut off.

Image:Snow in Insch on Monday. The village in Aberdeenshire has seen 30cm (just under 1ft) of snow. Pic: PA

Villagers in Insch, in Aberdeenshire, described it as “one of the worst winters in 25 years” after being cut off by nearly a foot of snow.

Resident Doug Griffin said: “There has been nothing like this since 2010, it is quite remarkable. It makes it really difficult to do anything.”