MID SUSSEX was thrown into chaos this morning as a shock snowstorm hit.

Athunder storm just after 6am signalled the start of a near two-hour mini-blizzard.

And weather forecasters warned there could be more snow on the way. Many residents were woken up by the thunder and lightning. Snow and sleet followed soon after.

Sue Donnelly, 38, from St Edmund's Road, Haywards Heath, said: "I was woken up by a loud bang. It was really frightening. I just hid under my duvet.

"It was a real shock to open the curtains to see a good covering of snow when I finally got out of bed. You just don't expect it in the middle of April."

Sunshine later helped melt the unseasonal snowfall.

The thaw meant motorists were able to get to work without too many hold-ups, although traffic northbound on main roads was still sluggish.

A spokesman for the AA said no major problems had been reported on the M23 and A23 up to Crawley, but snow had settled in the Pease Pottage area which had led to traffic delays.

He said: "The combination of snow and wet roads with the combination of the usual heavy rush-hour traffic has led to longer queues and more delays than normal as drivers go northbound from the A23 on to the M23."

Trains were struggling through as well.

Dave Ewart, from Connex SouthCentral, said they had managed to keep services running despite the bad weather.

He said: "There have been widespread reports of snow southwards from East Grinstead.

"But we're relieved to say it's not caused us any great problems."

Flurries of snow were reported in Crawley, Horsham, Broadfield, Balcombe and Cuckfield and more were forecast during the rest of the day.

AMet Office spokesman said: "We've had cold winds from the north-west bringing snow showers to some parts of the country. The temperatures are set to stay lower than average in Sussex over the next few days.

"It's also going to be windy, which will make it feel even colder."

He added that the temperature was now three degrees below average for this time of year.

Staff at Gatwick Airport said they would be monitoring the weather throughout the day but did not forecast any take-off delays.

Elsewhere in Sussex, flurries of snow were reported this morning in Worthing, Dial Post, Ashington and Bosham, near Chichester and weathermen say worse is to come.

And the Environment Agency has warned councils and firefighters that some of the highest tides of the year are forecast this weekend.

Peter Midgley, Sussex area manager for the agency, said: "Over the next four to five days the coastline will see some of the highest tides of the year.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.