People are being warned to brace themselves for snow and ice after two weather warnings covering Kent were issued by the Met Office.

Lasting for just under 12 hours, the snow warning came into effect at midday and is expected to cause travel disruption, treacherous driving conditions, and could lead to power cuts.

A separate warning for ice has also been issued, and will be in force from just after midnight tonight until 11am tomorrow.

Today, forecasters say the "most likely" scenario is for 2 to 4cm of snow to fall on higher ground across the south east, with 1 to 2cm in low level areas.

But they say snow could settle more widely, with 5 to 10cm falling at low levels this evening.

A spokesman said: "As a developing area of low pressure moves east across southern Britain today there is potential for rain to turn rapidly to snow as cold air is drawn in.

"There is potential for rain to turn rapidly to snow as cold air is drawn in" - Met Office spokesman

"However, there remains uncertainty over the track and intensity of this system, meaning that confidence is low in the amount and extent of any snow."

Overnight and into tomorrow, ice is expected to form on untreated surfaces, with any outbreaks of sleet or snow clearing by late morning.

The Met Office says ice will lead to difficult driving conditions and delays on the roads, with the south east expected to be one of the areas at greatest risk of disruption.

Forecasters yesterday upgraded an earlier prediction that snow would fall from a "very low likelihood" to "likely".

The spokesman continued: "Rain moving eastwards across the south of the UK on Thursday may turn to snow in places.

"There is a chance of snow settling with disruption to road, rail and air services as well as interruptions to power supplies and other utilities - this more likely across East Anglia and south east England.

"Associated heavy rain and strong winds may prove additional hazards."

The warning says motorists could also face icy conditions on the road.

The spokesman added: "As skies clear on Thursday night there is also potential for widespread ice to form quite rapidly on untreated surfaces."

Kent Fire and Rescue Service urged people not make unnecessary calls to the emergency services.

Assistant director for community safety, Ian Thomson, said: “We would like to reassure people that we have place practical plans in place to ensure the service is prepared during this period of cold weather and snow, and that our staff will be working really hard to ensure fire stations are ready to provide a 999 response when needed.”

He added: “We are asking the public to help us by only calling if they really need us, to avoid making non-essential journeys on the roads, adjust their driving to the weather conditions and to follow the safety tips below to keep themselves safe in the home.

“Remember that a fire can quickly take hold, which is why it’s vital you have working smoke alarms on every floor of your home to provide early warning in the unfortunate event of a fire.”