"Due to the fact that" does not mean "because".

I am getting really sick of seeing this everywhere. Examples:

School was cancelled today due to the fact that there was a snowstorm.
Due to the fact that there was a flood, the town had to be evacuated.
I don't like airplanes due to the fact that I'm afraid of heights.
Due to the fact that I can say "due to the fact that" instead of "because", I look really smart.

The same goes for "due to," although the error isn't quite so egregious:

Due to snow, school was cancelled.
Due to flooding, the town was evacuated.
I don't like airplanes due to my fear of heights.

These are all wrong, wrong, wrong!

The only place "due to" is legal is after the verb to be. For example:

The cancellation of school was due to a snowstorm.
The evacuation of the town was due to flooding.
My dislike for airplanes is due to my fear of heights.

That's it - the only possible way you can use "due to" and not look like an ass. Saying "due to the fact that" is even worse, because it shows that you're pretentious enough to use big words where a diminutive one would suffice. And on top of that, it's wrong. Just wrong.

This is certainly one of the more obscure grammar rules, considering it's a mistake that seemingly everyone makes. So don't feel bad if you've done this. Now you know.

Advanced technique:

tdent points out that the following sentence is valid: "The late departure of the aircraft, due to an engine problem, greatly annoyed me." Notice that the verb to be is not present, but is implied ("The late departure of the aircraft, which was due to an engine problem..."). What's the deal? Well, on kessenich's due to node, he points out that nouns are due to something, and verbs happen owing to something. So the sentence is valid under that rule as well (and in fact, the rules are really the same). So you can use either rule and you'll be OK.