‘DO not travel' is the advice from police as a red warning for heavy snow remains in place until tomorrow morning.

Avon and Somerset Police is urging people to stay at home as the Met Office forecasts severe weather for the county.

The Met Office has issued a red warning wind and snow for parts of Somerset – including a stretch of the M5 motorway between Taunton and Exeter - and amber warnings for wind and snow for other parts of our Force area.  

RELATED: How snow is impacting Taunton, Bridgwater, Chard, Ilminster Burnham and elsewhere in Somerset

The red warning started at 3pm today and runs until 2am tomorrow and the amber warning kicked in at 2pm and runs until 8am tomorrow.

This means there could be significant disruption to the road network and conditions will be dangerous.

If you are in the red area don’t travel. If you are in the amber area, please consider whether your journey is necessary.

If people have to travel, they are urged to take provisions in case they are stranded and to be aware of any issues on the road network by checking the Highways England website

The latest road conditions in Somerset on the Travel Somerset website.

Ch Supt Ian Wylie, who is leading the police response, said: “Our message to people living in areas affected by heavy snowfall is clear. Please don’t make any unnecessary journeys and play close attention to the latest forecasts and weather warnings.

“The conditions are likely to be treacherous. Long delays and public transport cancellations are likely. We don’t want anyone to be at risk, or stuck in their vehicles, so please heed the warnings.

“Despite the severe weather, we’ll continue to provide our round-the-clock service to the public and have activated our business continuity procedures so we are ready to respond to emergencies.

“We have well-rehearsed plans to deal with weather-related incidents and have been liaising with our partner agencies throughout the week to make sure everything which can be done to keep people safe, is being done.”

Call 999 for genuine emergencies

A police spokesman said: "We’re also expecting high volumes of calls to the 101 number and would urge people to carefully consider whether their call needs a police response. Routine calls should, if possible, be delayed until the weather conditions improve, or you can contact us online at https://www.avonandsomerset.police.uk/contact-us."

If you’re on social media, keep an eye on the following accounts: @ASPolice @HighwaysSWest @metoffice @TravelSomerset