SNOW fell in and lightning rent the sky in a wild night of weather.
Snow fell in Dorchester and Stinsford, on the A37 by Maiden Newton and in Shaftesbury in North Dorset but was cleared before 9am. The Old Sherborne Road saw ice and snowy conditions and in West Dorset snow fell in Rampisham.
Gritting teams were out last night in preparation for ice and snow.
Emergency services are urging motorists to drive carefully and leave extra time for journeys in the current conditions.
Snow fell earlier on the A37 north of Dorchester and on the A35 between Monkeys Jump and Stinsford roundabouts.
Dorset County Council has advised drivers that this snow had now been cleared but motorists are advised to take care.
There are reports of snow and ice on the Old Sherborne Road between Dorchester and Middlemarsh.
All schools remain open, according to the county council.
Meanwhile, it was a wild night for weather as Dorset was lashed by wind, rain, sleet and a thunder storm.
Portland Harbour reported one gust of wind measured 121.7 knots at the breakwater last night.
Residents across Weymouth and Portland were treated to a spectacular display of lightning as bolts rent the sky at around 10.20pm last night.
Thunder boomed over ahead as rain hammered down.
On Portland a lightning strike hit close to the Esso garage on Easton Lane.
It is believed the strike may have caused a communication problem so that the pumps are not connected to the tills and staff can't access the fuel.
No-one was injured in the strike as it was after staff had left for the night. A spokesman for the petrol station said: "It seems to have knocked out the communications systems."
The shop is open for business as usual but the fuel can't be accessed. Engineers have been informed and the staff are hopeful the issue will be resolved soon.
The Isle saw a cold and icy night as sleet and hail fell, creating a blanket on the ground.
Do you have any pictures of the weather? Tweet us @Dorsetecho or email Newsdesk@dorsetecho.co.uk
Marc Westmancott sent us these videos of the lightning and the sleet and hail.
Here's the hail and sleet:
Britta Eckhardt-Potter sent us these shots from Portland
Josh Lamb sent us this lightning picture from Weymouth
Snow on Portland by Andy Holdsworth
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