THE West of Scotland is expected to miss the worst of the weather as temperatures plummet across Scotland.

THE West of Scotland is expected to miss the worst of the weather as temperatures plummet across Scotland.

Snow and strong winds have already hit Aberdeenshire and a severe weather warning has been issued for the whole country.

The East of Scotland is expected to bear the brunt of the snow, but the west will not escape completely.

Gritters were out in Ayrshire, Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire last night as temperatures hit freezing.

Temperatures were expected to be around 2-3C inland today but fierce winds means it will feel even colder.

And the big chill will really kick in tonight when temperatures in some parts of the country go down to -3.

People are being warned to consider their travel plans very carefully and to "take care if they do need to travel".

But the good news is the first cold snap of the year is likely to be short-lived with forecasters predicting "a 36-hour blast".

Scotland will wake up to rising temperatures tomorrow which are likely to be accompanied by rain.

Nikki Berry, senior forecaster with Meteo Group, said today: "During tomorrow you are going to have sleet and snow showers across eastern Scotland."

Any snowfall today was expected to be light at no more than two to five centimetres.

Overnight up to 20cm could fall on higher ground.