Freezing conditions this morning in Flintshire with a yellow warning for ice in place

Its a very cold start to Monday in Flintshire, temperatures overnight dropped to -2ºC though it feels more like -4 or-5ºC in places, roads and pavements are treacherous due to frost and a lot of lying snow.

The Met Office has issued a yellow alert for ice in Flintshire which is in place until 11am.

Gritters have been working through the night treating around 400 miles of “priority 1 roads” in the county.

They include 30 miles of trunk roads which run through the Flintshire, 90 miles of Class A roads, 220 miles Class B and C Roads, Industrial Estate roads and strategic routes such as bus routes and town centres access roads.

Motorists are being warned of “treacherous” road conditions as snow turned into ice, the main A55 and A494 routes in Flintshire are clear and traffic is running freely, some smaller side roads still have signiciant amounts of snow which is now frozen.

North Wales Police said:

“If venturing out on the roads today please be aware of icy conditions.

Slow down and allow sufficient distance between you and the vehicle in front. Watch for locations where you may need to drive more carefully, either because of side winds or a greater risk of ice.”

Drivers are also advised to make sure car windows and lights are clear of snow before setting off.

Also give yourself extra time when traveling and pay extra attention to pedestrians as they may walk on the road because of the ice on the pavements.

Seventy one schools in Flintshire are closed today due to the weather, citing safety of children, parents and staff – and that they aim to reopen on Tuesday.

Deeside Sixth is closed “due to potentially unsafe conditions, “mock exams that were planned for today will take place next Monday” said the Head of Sixth Form Centre, Alex Thomas.

All Coleg Cambria sites will be closed for full time students today. “At this stage, all sites will still be open for staff and employer courses.”

Flintshire County Council have said waste, recycling and food collections have been cancelled today “for safety reasons.”

“Residents who normally have waste collected on Mondays should place their waste/recycling & food out for collection next Monday.”

“We will not be returning for any waste/recycling/food collections missed over the weekend and residents are requested to place their waste materials out on the same day next weekend.”

Update throughout the day: @Deesidedotcom