PEOPLE were stranded overnight in provisional shelters or trapped in their cars after heavy snow covered most areas in south Cumbria.

Cumbria Police declared a major incident on Saturday, December 2, to minimise heavy snowfall challenges on the county’s road network.

Police urged people not to travel unless necessary, particularly to the South Lakes and Millom areas, due to the challenging road conditions.

The multi-agency response was launched after the Met Office issued an amber warning for snow covering large sections of south and west Cumbria, which was in place until midnight.

An additional yellow weather warning was also in place from midnight until 11am on Sunday morning, covering most of the county.

Several community venues were opened to offer support to those impacted by the weather and emergency services worked to help people stuck in vehicles.

Amongst those venues was Coniston Sports & Social Centre, which provided shelter for more than 30 people.

Charlotte Crisp, Volunteer at Coniston Sports & Social Centre, said: "We started getting calls around 3.30pm from the Parish Council and the Mountain Rescue to say that a walking group between 18 to 24-year-olds and people that were for the rally were stranded.

"We ended up providing hot food and drinks and set up a shelter for them with 35 people staying overnight.

The volunteer said that in Coniston, they had between '12 and 14 inches of snow' and that people 'were not expecting' the amount of snow.

Yvonne Graham Hall Manager at Grizebeck Community Hall said that everything happened 'very quickly.'

She said: "We ended up with three people staying overnight and getting a lot of phone calls about the state of the road. 

"Somebody message to say that a lady was stranded with a child in the car and had no food."

On Saturday evening, severe traffic delays were reported in the region due to the snow on the A590, A591 and A595.

Other roads were impassible including the road on A5092 both ways between Whicham and Greenodd.

Several accidents were also reported in Barrow, Dalton, Millom and on the M6 southbound between J38 (Tebay) and 37 (Kendal) following an incident of jack-knifed lorries.

The police urged people not to travel, or if they decided to leave their vehicles they should try and move them to the side of the road so emergency services could reach those who were trapped.

Superintendent Andy Wilkinson of Cumbria Police said the conditions were 'challenging.'

"We are aware of a number of incidents in which highway teams and those assisting in the efforts to support those affected by the snow have been verbally abused," he said.

"We understand people's frustration during this time. However, agencies are working hard to improve the situation in Cumbria and are also facing the challenging road conditions when responding."

He added that the snow had been 'much more significant than forecast'.

"We continue to ask people to not travel and to only do so if absolutely necessary,” he concluded.