A month in the freezer for Scotland as Arctic blasts in ice and snow

Strong winds and snow are forecast for Scotland (iStock)

SCOTLAND faces a month-long deep freeze over Christmas with a mass of air from the Arctic causing temperatures to plummet as low as -17C.

The festive forecast comes as a “snow bomb” covered parts of the country with up to 10 inches falling today, in what has been dubbed Snow Sunday – Britain’s biggest snow event for five years.

Weathermen have warned of repeated snowfalls, ice and freezing temperatures in Scotland and England causing more weather-related disruption than normal.

Polar vortex winds – which normally spin around the North Pole keeping cold air trapped in the Arctic – will weaken over the next week, allowing freezing air to spill south and chill Scotland. The same phenomenon was behind 2010’s -16C temperatures, starting the infamous Big Freeze, as well as lows of -18C in February 2009.

Parts of Scotland and northern England have already seen the mercury fall to as low as -12C, with Storm Ana expected to bring more snow flurries and ice tomorrow.

Drivers have been warned of treacherous road conditions over the next few days as Tuesday brings no let-up in the cold, icy weather.

The Army has been put on standby to help areas worst affected by snowfall, with up to 10 inches falling in north Wales and the Peak District last night.

The Met Office forecasts up to four inches of snow today in the Borders and flurries in the north, while the Central Belt is expected to avoid any major downfall.

Forecaster Charlie Powell, of the Met Office, said: “Most snow will fall in three or four hours, leaving an awful lot of lying snow.

“Monday has a very wintry element to precipitation and strong winds from Storm Ana.

“Minus 9C or -10C could be seen at low-level locations in Scotland on Sunday and Monday morning.

“Adding potential ice on Monday morning will lead to potentially really bad driving conditions.”

Some roads are set to be impassable, trains delayed and planes cancelled.

Ex-BBC and Met Office forecaster John Hammond said: “Christmas looks very different to last year’s mid-teens temperatures, daffodils and spring-like weather.”