Nearly 50 flood warnings in place as heavy rain descends on Britain The majority of the flood warnings affect the South West. Meanwhile thousands of homeowners braced for the big thaw this weekend have been warned to protect their houses from flooding - by building an army of snowmen. The unusual advice from the Environment Agency comes as forecasters predict days of heavy snow will quickly melt when daytime temperatures in the South rise by as much as 10C by Sunday. On Friday, daytime temperatures in the South will fall as low as -1C before climbing to 9C by Sunday. London and the South Coast are likely to see the warmest weather. The Environment Agency said compacted snow and ice in snowmen will melt more slowly than snow on the ground meaning there is less surface water come the time of a thaw. Spokesman Roy Stokes said: "Ideally if everybody built themselves a snowman that will slow the thaw down a bit." Warmer temperatures will be accompanied by heavy rain as well as gale-force winds in some areas. Parts of the South West could see speeds of up to 35mph on Saturday. Snow caused further disruption yesterday as motorists abandoned their cars and flights and trains were disrupted for the sixth successive day. Southern cancelled six rail services in London and halved the number of carriages on 46 services between the capital and Surrey and Brighton. Thirty people were forced to spend the night in a village hall on Tuesday after becoming stranded in their cars because of snow on the A39 between Bridgwater and Wilton in Somerset. Police took the men and women to a fire station in Nether Stowey where they were served hot drinks. Ice and snow also forced the closure of hundreds of schools in Wales for the second day running.