A small number of flights from Ireland to Heathrow airport have been cancelled ahead of Storm Emma, as heavy snowfall in England and mainland Europe causes disruptions.

Aer Lingus confirmed four flights between Dublin and Heathrow have been cancelled so far this week, as the severe weather begins to cause probems.

The Heathrow Airport Authority advised all airlines to cut a number of planned short haul flights from their schedules, to help manage the delays caused by the bad weather.

On Tuesday Aer Lingus cancelled its 5.20pm (EI176) flight to London, and the 12.10pm (EI157) and 21.05pm (EI177) flights from London to Dublin.

A spokesman for the airline said it “regrets the inconvenience caused to our guests,” who will be accommodated on the next available flight.

British Airways has cancelled over a dozen flights, a small number of which were between Dublin and London.

A spokeswoman for the British airline said the effect on Irish bound flights was “minimal”.

Following advice from Heathrow air traffic control, the airline agreed to run a reduced schedule “to help mitigate the effects of the difficult weather conditions”, she said.

Aircraft flying from Heathrow, and several airports in Europe, are receiving de-icing treatment before takeoff, due to the snow and icy conditions.

Both Cork and Shannon airports have not yet announced any flight cancellations for Tuesday or Wednesday.

Italy

Ryanair have cancelled a large number of flights to and from Italy due to the bad weather, but currently all Irish flights are operating as normal.

Ciampino, the second largest airport in Rome and Ryanair’s main hub, was closed on Monday night as workers attempted to clear snow from its two runways. Most of Italy’s other main airports were open, albeit with flight delays.

A group of passengers were stranded in Lanzarote airport due to bad weather, after their original Ryanair flight home on Sunday evening was unable to land at the airport.

One passenger, Andrea Booth of Churchtown, Co Dublin, said the group “luckily” got a replacement flight home late last night, arriving in Dublin at 1.30am on Tuesday morning.

Met Éireann said there was the risk of a “status red” snow warning being issued for Thursday and Friday as Storm Emma descends upon Ireland. Preparations are being put in place across the country ahead of the severe weather, which may bring 6cm of snow over Tuesday, the forecaster warned.

Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government Eoghan Murphy said if a status red warning was issued it would lead to “automatic schools closure”, and the situation was being kept under close review.

Fatal crashes

Four people have died in car crashes amid heavy snow across Britain.

Three were killed in a crash in Lincolnshire and another man died after a collision in Cambridgeshire on Tuesday morning.

The Met Office said several centimetres of snow had fallen in some parts overnight.

Motorists have been warned to take extra care on the roads and drive to the snowy conditions.

There were 20 collisions within three hours on Lincolnshire’s roads, including a school bus with 45 pupils on board, police said.

Two people were found dead in Romania as snow and sub-zero temperatures across much of Europe saw flights cancelled, road and rail transport disrupted and schools closed.

A Siberian weather system forecasters have called the “beast from the east” brought the coldest temperatures for years to many regions. The freeze was expected to continue for much of the week.

In southern Romania,parts of a motorway linking the capital Bucharest to Constanta and dozens of other roads were closed. More than 80 trains and 15 flights were cancelled, Romanian police said, and Romania’s Black Sea ports were closed.

Record snowfall of 182 cm (72 inches) paralysed the northern Croatian town of Delnice and rescue services took several hours to evacuate residents in the nearby village of Mrzle Vodice. Temperatures hit a low of -20 degrees Celsius in Zavizan on the Velebit mountain.

Schools were closed in Bucharest and ten Romanian counties as well as across western and central Croatia.

The roofs of dozens of houses collapsed under the weight of snow in the Unsko-Sanski canton in northwestern Bosnia.

State-run RTCG TV reported that Montenegro’s main Golubovci airport was closed for several hours overnight.

A rare snowstorm in Rome on Monday prompted Italian authorities to call in the army to help clear the streets.

Additional reporting - Reuters