A man has died after the car he was driving veered off a path and became submerged in a Derbyshire river.
The 42-year-old was driving his 11-year-old daughter to school near the Monsail Trail, north of the A6, when the Toyota Aygo entered the River Wye.
His wife was driving their nine-year-old son in another car behind him which also left the path and ended up in the water.
Derbyshire Police said the two children and their 39-year-old mother managed to escape unhurt from the cars but the father could not be saved, despite attempts from local residents, and died a short time later.
Paul Hawker, station manager at Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service, was one of the first on the scene and said the wintry weather in the area was a contributing factor in the accident, a fire service spokeswoman said.
The county has experienced heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures in recent days.
Both mother and father were taking their children to school when the tragedy happened just after 8.30am.
Locals waded into the river to try to help the man and when police arrived on the scene an officer also plunged into the water to try to aid the rescue attempt.
Emergency vehicles and personnel, local mountain rescue volunteers, land ambulances, and the air ambulance, attended to take all four passengers to hospital.
Police said the man later died at Stepping Hill Hospital.
No names of the family members involved have yet been released and identification is expected to take place tomorrow.
Deaths linked to the recent cold snap have now hit double figures and forecasters are predicting another foot of snow is on its way for some areas.
Although the end of the cold weather is in sight as temperatures are expected to rise at the weekend, a further dumping of snow is expected tomorrow, bringing with it fears of further travel disruption.
The Highlands of Scotland will see the heaviest snowfall with up to a foot, while up to six inches could fall in northern England, four inches in the Midlands and up to two inches in the South.
The Met Office said it has amber warnings in place for much of Scotland, the north of England, east of England and East and West Midlands, with yellow warnings in Wales, southwest England and London and the South East.
It warned that strong winds will also lead to drifting and blizzard-like conditions, particularly over higher level roads in the north.
The Environment Agency has warned of the risk of minor localised flooding in some areas due to the rapid thaw.
Flood risk manager Phil Rothwell said: “A combination of rain and snowmelt over the weekend will increase the risk of flooding, especially in south west England, Wales, the west Midlands and northern England.
“We are closely monitoring the situation and have teams ready to respond to any potential flooding.”
