February is going to be FREEZING! Met Office warns the Big Chill will continue until March after temperatures plummet to -10C on coldest night of year

February is going to be FREEZING! Met Office warns the Big Chill will continue until March after temperatures 

plummet to -10C on coldest night of year

• After last week's freeze, the Met Office forecast mainly milder and wetter conditions for the next two weeks
• However the chill is set to return, with temperatures to drop to as low as -10 for much of mid to late February
• It comes after 1,023 more deaths than average were recorded in the week temperatures hit -5C this January
• Today will be dry with sunny spells for much of the UK following a frosty start, with rain outbreaks in the West

A killer cold of -10C has been forecast for much of February - after the previous -5 snap caused an extra 1,000 deaths this month.

After last week's freeze, the Met Office forecast mainly wet and windy conditions for the next two weeks, with milder conditions expected for much of the British Isles.

But Government weathermen said the country is set for a fresh 'prolonged' chill in mid and late February.

February has seen temperatures plunge to at least -8C - and as low as -18C - in each of the past five years, Met Office records show. 

Met Office forecaster Emma Salter said: 'It's a big change from cold to unsettled conditions into February. A westerly flow means wet and windy spells at times, with gales possible in the North and West.

'But it looks like it turning colder again in mid and late February. The wind direction is expected to shift to a colder direction, which is from the east or north, with high pressure building.

'Wintry conditions are possible again. People should keep an eye on the forecast.'

Today's forecast suggests it will be mainly dry with sunny spells for much of the UK, with outbreaks of rain in the far West. 

Hundreds more cold weather deaths are feared in the February chill - after 1,023 more deaths than average were recorded in the week temperatures hit -5C this month.

In the week ending January 13, the most recent week for which death figures from the Office of National Statistics are available, 13,715 deaths were reported in England and Wales, up from the week's average of 12,692

ONS figures show 20 per cent of winter deaths are people aged under 75, with 11 per cent under 65. The Department of Health said cold conditions worsen winter killers including flu, chest diseases, heart attacks, strokes and dementia.

Public Health England said many cold weather deaths were preventable - blaming draughty houses' lack of insulation, inadequate heating and Brits failing to wrap up warm in chills. 

Department of Health chief medical officer Professor Dame Sally Davies, writing in the Cold Weather Plan for England, said: 'Cold-related deaths represent the biggest weather-related source of mortality. Winter sees a significant rise in deaths.'

Dr Thomas Waite, of Public Health England's extreme events team, said: 'Thousands of people die because of their exposure to cold weather. It's really important we all do everything we can to ensure everyone stays well.'

Temperatures this morning saw a big contrast between different areas of the UK, with a 20-celsius swing between Plymouth – with highs of 11C – and Cairngorm in Scotland at -9C.

The coldest night of the year so far has been recorded in Scotland, with the UK seeing a temperature difference of more than 20 degrees between north and south.

Braemar in Aberdeenshire saw temperatures dip to minus 10.1C, while the Isles of Scilly recorded 10.2C, the Met Office said.

Met Office spokeswoman Emma Sharples said Braemar was a 'well-known cold spot' due to its location in the Scottish Highlands.

'It is a valley location, so you tend to get cold air drained down into the valley,' she said.

The chilly spell did not beat the coldest night of the winter though - on Monday December 5 temperatures fell to minus 11C in Cromdale, Moray.

Snow cover in Scotland and cold air in the north helped keep temperatures low, with overnight figures of minus 3C in Edinburgh, minus 2.8C in Carlisle and minus 1.6C in Durham.

Meanwhile, temperatures hit 4.3C in Nottingham, 7.1C in Gravesend and 7.7C in Cardiff. The coldest night in January 2016 was minus 12.4C in Kinbrace, Scotland.

A spokesman from MeteoGroup said the UK could see highs of 13C (55.4F) in the coming week, as the weather gets a lot milder.

He said 'low pressure systems moving in from the Atlantic' would cause the change in temperature.

Towards the weekend and into the second week of February, the weather will 'get quite unsettled', as wind and heavy rain sweeps across the UK.