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© PACrawling along: Motorists edge their way forward in the centre of York today
  • Woman dies after falling into freezing lake in West Yorkshire
  • Body of man in his 50s pulled from stream in Surrey
  • Eight inches of snow forecast tonight for London and South East
  • 900 flights cancelled as Gatwick and Edinburgh airports close
  • Shops running out of basics as lorries struggle to deliver
  • Passengers stranded overnight on freezing trains in South East
  • Police advise people not to go out unless absolutely necessary
  • Temperatures set to fall to -6c, with winds making it feel even colder
Britain's workforce was tonight embroiled in a second night of snow chaos with forecasters warning there is worse to come.

Police in several counties have been urging people to leave work early - with up to eight more inches of snow predicted in London and the South East tonight.

Eurostar said that half of its services would be cancelled today. It advised passengers to only make essential journeys.

Anyone who doesn't have to travel is being warned to stay at home as temperatures plummet to -6c.

Surrey Superintendent Chris Moon said: 'I have put out several severe weather warnings in my career, but this one I really must stress.'

Large swathes of the country ground to a halt this afternoon - with many roads, rail lines and airports forced to close.

Thousands of children were forced to stay at home after their schools were shut.

Scores of passengers were forced to sleep in broken-down trains overnight after two trains became stuck in the snow, while passengers stranded at Gatwick faced the prospect of bedding down for another night in the terminal.

The airport shut down with hundreds of flights cancelled after two runways became inoperable.

An airport spokesman said: 'We brought in extra people to try to clear the runway. We had a vast army of people, but as fast as they were clearing the snow, the quicker it settled again.'

The facility will remain shut until at least 6am at the 'very, very earliest'.

And passengers at Edinburgh Airport were also left stranded after it shut early because of the harsh weather.

Rail services around the country are also expected to be disrupted through the night and tomorrow, with special timetables running in worst-hit areas.

A spokesman for Network Rail said that the south and east were expected to be hardest hit by the weather overnight.

Asked how operators are handling the hazard, the spokesman said: 'I wouldn't want to generalise about the country as a whole as there are some train operators that have run a near perfect service today - yet if you move further south you'll find 2ft of snow and disrupted services.

'We are expecting particularly heavy snow tonight in Kent and Sussex, and while there will be a contingency timetable in operation, people can expect delays and should check online if possible before they start their journey.'

The spokesman added that rail crews will be working through the night, with special 'ghost trains' running to keep lines and points free of ice.

'We will also have railroad treatment trains that spray anti-freeze, snowploughs on standby to deal with any drifts, and thousands of people out working through the night so that we can run as full a service as possible,' he said.

According to the National Rail website, more than half of the 28 train operators across the country had their timetables affected by the weather, with eight operators reporting 'major' delays and disruptions and a further eight suffering delays on some routes.

Regions hit worst by the weather included Scotland, the north and east.

East Coast, which runs trains in Scotland and the northeast, advised passengers not to travel unless absolutely necessary, warning that the weather was causing disruptions to 'all services'

First TransPennine Express and Grand Central which both operate out of the the north of England, also said that there were cancellations and major delays, with services out of Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds Middlesbrough and Nottingham affected.

Southeastern was running a limited contingency timetable 'due to the continued ice and snowy weather conditions', while Southern Railway's services were disrupted and all Gatwick Express services were suspended.

A spokesman for Southern Railway said: 'We will continue to do everything we can to run our planned services but passengers should be prepared for short notice alterations, cancellations and delays.

'We are currently running a revised Sussex Coast timetable and tomorrow plan to do the same.'

Shops are even running out of basics such as milk and bread, as lorries struggle to make deliveries.

Employment law firm Peninsula said a study of over 850 firms carried out today showed that 57 per cent of workers arrived in their offices, shops or factories late this morning, with the north of England hit the hardest.

Insurance firm RSA has estimated that the bad weather could cost the struggling British economy up to £1.2 billion a day, with retailers and the restaurant industry likely to be the worst affected.

But a police force in the South East said workers should leave work early.

Chief Superintendent Alasdair Hope, of Kent Police, said: 'People should consider their safety and decide if their journey is really necessary.

'If you do travel, make sure you have the right provisions for emergencies, and if you are already at work you should give serious consideration to getting home before conditions get worse this afternoon.'

Southeastern trains are also advising an early departure.

'We would encourage all passengers to leave London earlier than usual, before more bad weather arrives in the South East,' said a spokesman.

In West Yorkshire, a woman died after falling into a freezing lake today.

The woman was pulled from the water at Pontefract Racecourse and taken to Pontefract General Infirmary where she died. The circumstances of the death are being investigated, but the death is not being treated as suspicious, police said.

In Ewell, Surrey, children playing snowballs alongside a stream found the body of man aged in his 50s.

Detectives and forensic officers were called in as the body was pulled from the water. A spokesman for Surrey Police said it was too early to say whether the death was suspicious

Breakdown service Green Flag has accused local authorities of not spreading enough grit on minor roads, while the AA said there needed to be better planning to allow gritters through when traffic was heavy and roads were blocked.

The M3 was closed in both directions after a body was found close to junction two at Lyne near Virginia Water. Police were investigating whether the victim had been caught in the severe weather.

Strong 30mph north-easterly winds will make the temperatures feel as low as -7c in parts of the UK tonight and forecasters have warned that the freeze will not show signs of letting up until Friday.

Last night, commuters and families were stuck for more than five hours on a train from London Bridge to Sussex - then had to endure a half a mile walk through the snow to a station staff room, where they were still waiting to be rescued earlier today.

Scores more attempting to get home from London Charing Cross to Hastings in East Sussex were stranded for six hours overnight after the train broke down near Orpington.

They had to wrap themselves in layers of clothing to keep out the biting cold.

Benji Symes was onboard the Sussex-bound 10.23pm Southeastern train when the engine broke down half a mile from Sevenoaks in Kent.

He said carriages were left in total darkness until 3.30am.

'They tried several attempts to try re-boot the engine and even tried to get another train to try and tow us but nothing worked,' he said.

'In the end we had to form an evacuation and we had to walk half a mile or so up the track to Sevenoaks station.'

A spokesman for Southeastern trains said: 'Last night there were a number of incidents with trains becoming stuck due to the icy conditions including trains at Orpington and Sevenoaks.

'Buses were arranged and arrived at approximately 05.30 this morning and some passengers chose to stay on train at this point.

'We have also been working with Kent County Council overnight and set up a centre for passengers at the Angel Centre in Tonbridge where teas and coffee were being served.'

Kent and Sussex Police today urged motorists to stay off the roads with severe delays reported on the M25 London orbital motorway which passes through the counties.

Today there were scores of lorries still parked up on the motorway at Reigate, Surrey, following hours of gridlocked traffic yesterday.

In Nottinghamshire, drivers were told to use their vehicles 'only if absolutely necessary' after heavy snowfall overnight caused gridlock in parts of the county.

South Yorkshire Police also said motorists should stay off the roads as they tried to deal with several incidents in the area.

A force spokeswoman said: 'Police 4x4 vehicles were out overnight trying to assist with clearing roads and dealing with yesterday's gridlock as cars struggled to move anywhere.

'Sheffield City Council has been out this morning attempting to clear tram routes, some of which are running limited services.'

Gatwick Airport spokeswoman Sarah Baranowski said ground staff working throughout the night had not been able to clear the settling snow.

'It is vital that passengers do not make their way to the airport and check our website and with their airline for updates,' she added.

'We need to make sure the runway is safe before all flights can recommence but the snow has not stopped all night.'

London City Airport had cancellations and delays today due to the severe weather.

All East Midlands Trains' services were affected by the icy conditions, with no trains able to run between Sheffield and Liverpool Lime Street earlier today because of poor weather conditions at Dore in Yorkshire.

Southeastern rail network also faced severe disruption and delays today.

Eurostar trains were running about an hour late.

Shops across Kent, including Bromley, West Wickham and Elmers End, were today running short on fresh goods such as milk as deliveries struggled to get through.

In East Sussex, almost 90 schools were closed and in West Sussex more than 80 schools were shut today.

Almost 300 schools across East Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire were closed today.

Around 300 schools were also closed in South Yorkshire, with bus services suspended in Sheffield, Rotherham and Doncaster.

Freezing conditions and heavy snowfall have caused more problems on the roads across North Yorkshire.

More than 100 schools were closed and roads in the county, which included the A1 into and out of York and various roads around the city centre, all experienced problems due to snowfall.

In West Yorkshire, more than 100 schools closed and there were travel problems across the region, with Northern Rail suspending its train services between Leeds and Sheffield.

The fire brigade was also warning people not to venture onto frozen water.

In the past decade, more than 20 people have drowned in the UK because they walked on to frozen ponds and lakes, many to rescue people or dogs.

Neil Graham, of West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service, said: 'People should take extra care around the edges of waterways because a layer of snow can easily disguise thin ice underneath.'