Weather: Arctic blast shuts roads and schools in Wales

More than 200 schools and some main roads across Wales have closed after up to 10cm (4in) of snow fell in parts of the country.

More than 70 schools in Caerphilly, 60 in Rhondda Cynon Taf, 27 in Bridgend, 27 in Merthyr Tydfil and two in both Neath Port Talbot and Cardiff are shut.

Roads in south Wales have closed after temperatures fell to -4C overnight.

The Met Office has issued several yellow warnings for snow and ice across most of Wales until Friday afternoon.

In Wales, the lowest overnight temperature was in Snowdonia where the mercury dropped to -4C at Capel Curig.

Overnight temperatures plummeted to -15.2C in Kinbrace, Scotland.

Forecasters have said up to 10cm (4in) of snow has fallen on higher ground in Wales while 3-5cm has fallen across some of south, mid and west Wales.

Across the hills and south Wales, temperatures remain close to freezing with a brisk breeze with a maximum of 5C.

The cold Arctic air colliding with the milder fronts from the Atlantic are triggering the yellow warnings for heavy snow and ice, which are in place across much of Wales for most of Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

Through daylight hours on Wednesday, rain, sleet and snow looks fairly widespread. As air temperatures rise, coastal spots will likely see more rain. Further inland we will likely see more sleet and snow, which will become patchier overnight.

By the time we get to Thursday morning, large parts of the country will have seen around 2-4cm of snow at low levels.

That will be closer to 5-10cm where you have some elevation - and over some of Wales' higher ground like in Brecon Beacons and Monmouthshire, people could even see up to 20cm of snow.

While the snow is causing disruption for motorists, parents and schoolchildren, many in Wales are out enjoying the snow and sharing pictures on social media.

Payton, 1, and Ashton Dolbear, 3, from St Mellons were out on Caerphilly mountain with their parents this morning.

"This is Payton's first ever snow," said mum Amy Dolbear."They woke dad up screaming."

Mrs Dolbear said she thinks Payton "likes the idea of snow but not the cold".The parents said they have tried to get a sledge but they are sold out.

"The earliest any of the shops has a sledge is next week," said Mrs Dolbear. "They want one now."

Both the mountain roads over the Rhigos - the A4061 between Treherbert and Hirwaun - and the Bwlch, between Abergwynfi and Nantymoel, are shut.

There is congestion on the M4 in Newport following a crash on the eastbound stretch of the motorway while the A44 in Powys is closed at Llandegley after a crash.

Traffic Wales has reported congestion on the A470 and warned of poor driving conditions on the A465 Heads of the Valleys road near Ebbw Vale.

Flights from Bristol Airport had earlier been suspended due to the snowfall, with a "snow clearing operation" taking place but the airport is reporting some residual delays.