No-go: A makeshift 'road closed' sign, placed there by a resident of Brislington in Bristol today, informs drivers not to attempt to climb the hill due to sheet ice on the road- Teenage boy killed and his mother seriously injured after being struck by lorry on A1
- Sports fan found dead under ice at lake near World Darts Championships
- Young man in critical condition after sledging accident
- Fisherman buried under rubble after ice causes cliff to crumble
- Snowbound staff warned they face docked pay or loss of holidays
- Benson in Oxfordshire records temperature of -17.7C, making it colder than Moscow
- Manchester council leader slams schools for closing despite temps of -15C there
Britain is facing the coldest night of the winter so far tonight as the death toll from the freezing weather continues to rise.
Temperatures are expected to drop to lower than -20C in the Scottish Highlands tonight, following lows of -17.7C in Benson, Oxfordshire and -15C in Manchester overnight - the same temperatures found in domestic freezers.
As the snow turned to ice, the treacherous conditions across the country claimed the lives of at least five people.
Downing Street was also forced to wade into the growing row over gritting stocks as councils complained they were being forced to spread supplies more thinly on Britain's frozen roads.
In the latest death, a sports fan attending the World Darts Championships was found in a frozen lake near the competition venue.
The man, believed to be in his 40s, was discovered under ice close to the Lakeside Country Club in Surrey where the televised event is being held.
A 16-year-old boy was killed after the car he was travelling in crashed on the A1 near Richmond, North Yorkshire.
The teenager and his mother, from Hebburn in Northumbria, are believed to have been making their way to the hard shoulder after colliding with the central reservation when they were struck by a lorry.
Fire crews spent three hours trying to release the boy who had become trapped under the lorry, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
A spokesman for the North Yorkshire fire service said: 'The roads were treacherous. It was -6C (21.2F) and there were widespread icy roads.'
Stocks of grit were dwindling as a series of accidents on major routes added to difficulties for millions of drivers.
Snow fun: A man skis down Dean Street in Newcastle city centre today
Snow plough: A tractor clears the deep snow in Bredgar, Kent, todayThere was also growing anger tonight after hundreds of thousands of children were given another day off school.
Manchester City Council leader Sir Richard Leese criticised headteachers, saying many closures 'seem to be unnecessary'.
About 4,000 homes in southern England were also without power this evening, with the worst affected area around Petersfield, in Hampshire.
Meteogroup forecaster Andy Ratcliffe said the Scottish Highlands will be worst hit by tonight's icy blast.
He said: 'In Scotland it could be the coldest night of the winter for Britain, with temperatures as low as the minus 20s in the Highlands.
'Snow showers will creep in to parts of East Anglia, Kent and Scotland again overnight and tomorrow.
'There will also be a windchill factor going into the weekend making many areas, even in daytime, feel like minus 7C.'
White-out: A satellite image shows a snow-covered UK todayThe Met Office said tonight will be very cold across the UK with widespread ice and severe frost.
Further snow showers in the East will spread to central and southern areas. There will be mostly light winds, but gradually strengthening in the south.
Tomorrow will be bright but cold for many with temperatures struggling to rise above freezing. Snow showers will continue in the East and South East, with moderate north-easterly winds in the south.
Today, Gordon Brown spoke to the managing director of Salt Union, the Cheshire-based company which supplies two-thirds of the country's salt for gritting roads.
Cleveland Potash, one of the biggest suppliers of rock salt in the UK, said that as demand was outstripping capacity it asked the Department of Transport to draw up a list of customers to supply first.
Cheshire's Winsford salt mine also said it only has a few days' supply of surface salt left, but a spokesman for No 10 said there was no provision for central Government to take control of stocks.
It comes as the National Grid issued its second gas alert in three days, as the UK's freezing weather pushed demand to record levels.
The operator's gas balancing alert was prompted as demand was expected to hit 454 million cubic metres today - higher than the all-time record of 449 million in January 2003.
No races today: A bird's eye view of Cheltenham Racecourse today
Snowy streets: Residential streets in Gloucester covered in snow, as seen from the air todayRoads, trains and airports were also subjected to another day of havoc.
Huge queues formed at Eurostar terminals after a train broke down inside the Channel Tunnel for two hours earlier today. It comes just weeks after thousands of passengers were stranded after a number of trains broke down before Christmas.
Nearly all train companies reported disrupted services, with commuters suffering from both a reduction in frequency on routes and problems caused by broken-down trains.
Southeastern trains cancelled several services in Kent, while snow chains were fitted to buses on major routes in Brighton.
By 12.30pm today, the AA had attended around 11,000 breakdowns since midnight.
British Airways axed flights at Gatwick and Heathrow and easyJet cancelled around 70 flights at Gatwick.
Hardy: A jogger braves the snow in just shorts and T-shirt in Springfield near Chelmsford, Essex today
Treacherous: A pensioner falls on an icy path in Brislington, Bristol, today as snow turns to iceAmong the latest round of mass school closures were more than 300 in Hertfordshire, several hundred in Hampshire and all but one in St Helens.
More than 500 schools were said to be shut in Wales, along with hundreds of others in Warrington, Cheshire and Gloucestershire.
Frontline services continued to be stretched. Sussex Police reported there had been more 999 calls yesterday than officers received on New Year's Eve. North East Ambulance Service also underlined it was under 'very challenging conditions'.
In Northumberland, an angler was buried alive after the cliff face he was standing on collapsed under the weight of heavy snow and ice. The sea fisherman was casting off the coast near Newbiggin-by-the-Sea when the 20 metre cliff crumbled, burying him under rocks and rubble 50ft below.
More than 50 members of the local coastguard and fire crews made a desperate three-hour bid to uncover the man but he was pronounced dead at the scene last night.
In Shetland, Scotland, a 71-year-old woman was killed in a car crash in icy conditions, and in North Wales, fireman Gareth Wyn Rees, 50, died after slipping in snow and smashing his head on the ice while walking home from his station.
In North London, a young man was fighting for his life after suffering head injuries in a sledging accident.
The victim, who is in his mid-twenties, is believed to have crashed into a tree in Alexandra Park at about 2.30am today.
London Ambulance Service treated him at the scene before taking him to hospital, where he is in intensive care in a critical condition.
It emerged today that residents of a remote village in Lancashire have been cut off by snow for more than three weeks.
Cow Ark, near Clitheroe, has been dubbed 'the forgotten village' after families were left completely isolated for the 23rd day because snow and ice was blocking their only access road.
The villagers said they are furious with the council's policy of only gritting priority routes which has left them stranded and say that food and fuel supplies are running low.
Wrong direction: A jack-knifed lorry blocked the southbound A1 in County Durham today causing massive tailbacks as far as Newcastle
Snow express: A train heads through Ashford in Kent today, as the icy conditions continue across the SouthOne pensioner made a ten-mile round trip on foot to the nearest shop, complete with sledge, to stock up on supplies, they said.
Millions of those who are unable to get to work risk being penalised by bosses through loss of pay or holiday entitlement.
Business leaders said three million people missed work in the worst-hit areas yesterday, an absence rate of about 50 per cent.
Many were parents who were forced to take time off because more than 10,000 schools were closed.
Unions warned that 'scrooge bosses' who dock pay or holiday entitlement will cause 'unnecessary resentment'.
Isolated: Children play in the snow in the village of Cow Ark, Lancashire, which has been cut off by snow for more than three weeks TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: 'Workers who have been prevented from getting to work despite their best efforts should not have to foot the bill for bad weather conditions.'
The freezing weather has already cost businesses an estimated £690million, and experts fear economic output could be hit by as much as £14billion over the next three weeks if the bad weather continues.
Baby joy: Maria Hollis, from Wallasey, kisses little Maggie who was born on the M53 Motorway sliproad in the back of an ambulance during the heavy snowfallsource: dailymail
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