Storm Goretti left 2,000 Welsh homes without power, closed over a 100 schools and caused travel chaos
Dramatic footage taken during the height of Storm Goretti showed the moment parts of Wales were hit by “thundersnow” and blizzard-like conditions.
Many areas of the country faced widespread disruption on Thursday evening as the “multi-hazard” event brought heavy snow, rain and strong wind gusts creating difficult travel disruption. Drivers were forced to abandon their vehicles on number of major roads in south Wales, including mountain routes in Rhondda Cynon Taf and the Heads of the Valleys Road in Merthyr as a Met Office amber snow warning came into force.
While the worst of the weather is over, a yellow ice warning remains in place for most of Wales until midday on Saturday, January 10. You can recap our snow coverage on Thursday and Friday here.
Some of the most severe conditions were reported in parts of Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion where incredible videos show snow and thunder and lightening hitting at the same time.
The Met Office explained that when thunderstorms form in wintry conditions they can sometimes give rise to heavy downpours of snow which are often called thundersnow.
“When thundersnow occurs at night the lightning appears brighter – this is because the light reflects off the snowflakes,” the weather agency says.
“The snow contained within the thunderstorm acts to dampen the sound of the thunder meaning it will only be heard if you are within two to three miles of the lightning.”
As well as the disruption to journeys by road and rail and school closures on Friday, around 2,000 homes in Wales were also left without power in the midst of the storm.
At 9pm on Thursday, the National Grid website showed around 1,000 homes were without power in Ceredigion and Powys. There were almost 500 homes experiencing power cuts in Carmarthenshire, with dozens of properties also reporting issues in Newport and Neath Port Talbot.
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