Blackout fears in ICEBOX Britain: Snow and ice alert after -8.9C overnight trends now
Families were left shivering last night as temperatures plunged to sub-zero levels as the Troll of Trondheim tightened its icy grip.
Shap in Cumbria was hit by the worst of it, with the Cumbrian village getting lows of -8.9C.
But it was Stannington in Sheffield that will have suffered the hardest overnight - with a Major Incident still declared there.
Up to 2,000 properties are without gas after flooding wrecked the system earlier this week.
Snow has fallen across parts of the UK and up to six inches are predicted to fall in areas across the country in coming days (snow plough in Scotland)
Engineers continuing to try and get gas supplies back to homes in icy Stannington, Sheffield
One resident there described their home as 'as cold as Iceland' without fuel to warm their house.
They added they had wrapped their son in five blankets overnight but had still woken up cold.
The trigger in some areas has also been reached for some people to get cold weather payments.
Households in 300 postcodes will get £25 if they area already in receipt of certain benefits.
A woman takes a photo of the skyline from a snow covered Calton Hill in Edinburgh on Thursday
And the icy overnight conditions spelled chaos on the roads as drivers struggled to cope.
It was made worse by the news that there is also a shortage of gritter drivers.
A snow warning has been issued for parts of the UK as Arctic conditions caused temperatures to plummet overnight and the Met Office predicts up to six inches of in the coming days.
It came as reports suggested households could be alerted to cut electricity usage within days amid rising energy costs and sun and wind levels that will remain low.
Last night the Scottish Highlands saw the mercury drop to -9.3C at Aonach Mor mountain while
