GRITTING crews are preparing to hit Lancashire’s streets for the first time in 2015 – as forecasters predict a reasonable chance of snow and sleet falling this weekend.

Met Office officials issued a ‘yellow’ wind warning overnight for parts of Blackburn, Burnley and Accrington as the first blasts of winter weather prepared to strike the east of the county.

Forty-nine gritting vehicles have been on standby, ready to be deployed, with the cold snap warnings, with 30,000 tonnes of salt being held in storage across nine depots, and motorists are being urged to take greater care.

County councillor John Fillis, cabinet member for highways and transport, said gritting teams were “as ready as we can be” – though not every road could be covered.

He said: “We get very accurate weather forecasts and grit whenever a freeze is forecast.

“It isn’t practical to treat every road, however we treat all the A roads, all B roads, and some C roads, which adds up to around 1,500 miles of road – about a third of the total in Lancashire.

“Last year we experienced some very changeable conditions, including incidents when hail fell on freezing roads and turned to sheet ice in a few minutes.

“Rain falling on freezing surfaces can also create black ice which is virtually impossible to see, and can happen even when a road has been gritted.”

A Met Office spokesman said the outlook for Saturday was for “fairly widespread” wintry showers earlier on, with winds remaining high.

The forecast for Sunday and Monday predicts fewer wintry showers, with it remaining cold.

Cllr Fillis added: “The very wet conditions we’ve had this week will also mean that run-off from fields or springs flowing up could create ice patches on rural roads.

“It looks like we could expect these kind of conditions over the weekend. I’d like people to remember that just because a road has been gritted it doesn’t mean it won’t be icy as it takes time and action of tyres to mix the salt with the ice and make it work.”