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Heavy snow and high winds have left tens of thousands of homes without power while dozens of motorists had to be rescued after becoming stranded in snow drifts of up to 15 feet overnight.
In Cumbria, 72 motorists were left trapped and specialist teams had to deploy special vehicles with caterpillar tracks to complete a rescue operation.
Gary Parsons, Bay Search and Rescue's station officer, said: "They were all a little bit chilly and shaken. The snow came down so fast and it was driven by the wind - that was the big factor. It got up to 14 or 15 feet around hedges.
"It was a freak weather event. We've never seen anything like it up here before. It was not a Cumbrian scene at all, more like something you see in Canada or somewhere like that."
Two ex-military "snowcat" vehicles were used to reach stranded motorists and transport them to a nearby school hall which served as an overnight emergency centre.
Forecasters said it was expected to be Britain's largest snowfall since 1981, with wintry conditions expected to stretch into Sunday afternoon for most parts of the country.