Wintry weather causes travel misery

Heavy rainfall overnight, combined with snow and gales, made conditions for the Wednesday commute treacherous - while one driver in Derry's Marlborough Terrace didn't even get started after his van was buried under bricks from a collapsed wall.

"It was a lucky escape," Charlie Mullan told UTV.

"If it had happened during the daytime and had my daughter and grandbaby they could have been crushed to death. Could have been a tragedy."

In Pictures: Severe weather hits NI

While a number of routes have since been re-opened after earlier closures and others are now passable with care, many more - particularly minor roads - are still closed to traffic.

The Ballymoney and Moyle areas - particularly the Glenariff and Ballyemon Roads - are among the worst affected by snow, while many smaller roads in the Ballymena and Larne areas remain difficult.

Localised accumulations of 2-5cm of snow have been reported, with one or two places seeing up to 10cm.

Met Office

Earlier, Translink warned that Ulsterbus services across parts of Northern Ireland - include Antrim, Ballymena, Coleraine and Crumlin - were subject to delays and cancellations, while Stena reported weather-related disruption to ferry sailings.

The 10.30pm Stena ferry from Belfast to Liverpool has been cancelled and all passengers are asked to contact the reservations line on 08447 707070. The next available sailing will be at 10.30am on Thursday.

Flooding also led to three families being evacuated from their homes by the Fire and Rescue Service and the Red Cross, in the Lower Ballymagroarty area of Derry on Tuesday night.

A mum and two children were among those taken to safety.

Some roads were also closed due to fallen trees, after the Met Office issued an amber warning for gales across Northern Ireland - the second most severe alert used by the service.

Yellow warnings for icy conditions now extend into the weekend, with more wintry showers possible on higher ground.