THE Met Office have issued an updated yellow snow and lightning weather warning for the Scottish Borders which is valid from 5pm tonight (Wednesday February 23 2022) until 8pm tomorrow.

Frequent heavy snow showers are expected in the region along with very gusty winds and a chance of frequent lightning affecting some places.

Temperatures across Scotland and Northern Ireland are expected to drop sharply following a squally band of rain today with frequent heavy and blustery snow showers arriving from the Atlantic.

Away from immediate west-facing coasts, 1 to 3 cm, and in places 3 to 7 cm of snow is likely to build up even at low levels, whereas on higher ground some places could see 10 to 20 cm building up by Thursday morning.

The showers will be accompanied by strong, blustery winds, with gusts of 45-55 mph possible, and a chance of 65 mph on coasts.

Blizzard conditions are likely over higher ground. There is a small chance that some of the showers could be accompanied by frequent lightning, which could impact power supplies, including some places outside of the warning area.

Snow showers are increasingly likely to turn back to rain and sleet at low levels later Thursday morning and early afternoon, although remaining as snow above 200-300m.

The Met Office advise that there will be a small chance of longer journey times or cancellations as road, rail, air and ferry services are affected. There is also a chance some vehicles and passengers could become stranded.

There is a slight chance that power cuts may occur, with the potential to affect other services, such as mobile phone coverage.

There is a slight chance that some rural communities could become cut off.

And there is a small chance of injuries and danger to life from lightning strikes and where lightning strikes occur, there is a small chance that building/structures could be damaged.