'HEAVY snow' is forecast in Oxford this evening, with a yellow weather warning issued.
The first snow of the winter for Oxford has been reported in the last half an hour.
The snow's getting heavier! Everything's gotten a light dusting so far... #Oxford pic.twitter.com/k9XI9jkhzr
— Morgan Lamia (@Morg_Lamia) January 12, 2017
Hello lovely #Oxford. It has just started to #snow It's officially snowing when we have snow on the #tower Ring the Bells it's snowing
— Carfax Tower (@CarfaxTower) January 12, 2017
The Met Office says it expects rain from 11am but this will become snow when temperatures drop to 1C at about 5pm.
Council gritters will head out this afternoon in response to the warning.
Overnight, temperatures are expected to drop to a low of 0C - but will feel like -5C in the cold wind.
The forecaster has issued a yellow weather warning for London and the South East, which says people travelling by road, rail and air could all face disruption tonight.
Power supplies and other utilities could also be affected.
The warning says 'there is potential for rain to turn rapidly to snow as cold air is drawn in' but warns there is also 'a great deal of uncertainty' about the severity of the snow.
It added: "As skies clear on Thursday night there is also potential for widespread ice to form quite rapidly on untreated surfaces."
Oxfordshire County Council this morning said it had snow ploughs at the ready in case gritters needed them tonight.
The county council has confirmed its gritting lorries will head out this afternoon in response to the weather warning.
Our gritters will be out from 1430 in northern half of Oxon and 1500 in southern half of Oxon ahead of possible sleet and snow #oxonwinter
— Oxfordshire County (@OxfordshireCC) January 12, 2017
Council teams said they will also 'continue to monitor' the forecast to judge whether a second gritting run will be required later in the evening.
The authority said a single gritting run covering all A-roads, B-roads and some C-roads in Oxfordshire – a total of 1200 miles - covered the equivalent distance of London to Iceland.
The council deploys 28 gritters on such a gritting run, Mr Smith said.
"Council staff are available through-the-night to keep a watch on conditions", he added.
"Our advice to drivers is that even on gritted road surfaces, winter driving conditions can be very difficult and require due care and attention."
Residents have taken to Twitter to show the snow in their area's, if you have any snow pictures send them to news@oxfordmail.co.uk
#SnowWatch update: SNOW!!!! Light but delightful snowfall in Easr #Oxford ❄️❄️❄️ pic.twitter.com/IGSZC0A7sB
— Daily Information (@DailyInfoOxford) January 12, 2017
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