Storm Eunice heads for UK and prompts danger to life warning

[bsnub]

Parts of the UK are bracing for the impact of one of the most serious storms in years after the Met Office issued a rare red warning for Friday.

Storm Eunice could bring gusts of up to 90mph in south-west England and south Wales, with a risk to life from flying debris.

Damage to homes, cancelled trains and power cuts are likely. Many schools are closing as a precaution.

The warning is in place from 07:00 GMT until 12:00 GMT.

It means millions of people living near the coastline of Devon, Cornwall and Somerset, as well as the south coast of Wales, are being urged to stay at home during the storm.

A lower amber warning for wind remains in place for the rest of Wales and most of England as far north as Manchester, from 05:00 until 21:00 on Friday.

All train services in Wales have been suspended on Friday, while rail companies are urging other customers not to travel due to expected disruption.

Almost all Welsh councils as well as Somerset County Council said their schools would close on Friday. More than a hundred schools across Devon and Cornwall will also shut and Bristol City Council said it had advised schools not to open.

The government held an emergency Cobra meeting to discuss the response to the incoming storm.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the Army was "on standby" to support those affected.

It comes after Storm Dudley caused widespread travel disruption and power

There are concerns that Storm Eunice's strong winds and a possible storm surge could combine with high spring tides to bring coastal flooding to the west, south-west and the south coast of England.

Ten severe flood warnings - meaning there is a danger to life - are in place on the Severn Estuary and the Wye Estuary.

A government source told the BBC they were "well-prepared" with more than 250 high-volume pumps and 6,000 trained staff able to be deployed, adding they were not taking the threat posed by Eunice "lightly".

The Met Office said extremely strong winds would develop over south-west England and south Wales early on Friday, with widespread inland gusts of 70-80mph and up to 90mph near some coasts.

In the red warning zone, roofs could be blown off and power lines brought down while trees are likely to be uprooted, it said.

The winds are expected to ease from the west during the late morning, but it will remain unsettled over the weekend with more rain and strong winds.

Yellow warnings are in place on Saturday until 18:00 GMT, covering the whole of England's south coast, as well as coastal areas in the south-west of England and south Wales. Further strong winds could hinder recovery after the storm, the Met Office said.

Aidan McGivern, from the Met Office, said red warnings were not issued lightly and only when there was a significant danger to life and high confidence of a major impact.

"It is the most powerful storm we have seen in recent years and we should tie down anything loose, especially trampolines, and make plans to stay in, especially if you live in a red zone," he told the BBC.

The last red warning was for Storm Arwen in November last year, which saw strong winds batter the east coast of Scotland and north-east England.

Before that, one had not been issued since 2018, when the so-called "Beast from the East" brought widespread heavy snow and freezing temperatures to many parts of the UK in late February and March.

BBC Weather presenter Simon King said the wind strengths forecast for southern parts of the UK were comparable to the Burns' Day Storm of January 1990, which caused widespread damage, and the storms that hit the UK during the winter of 2013-2014.

Train companies are urging customers not to travel on Friday, with blanket speed restrictions set to be imposed on the main rail lines across the country.

Jake Kelly, from Network Rail, said: "We will be doing everything we can to keep as many services as possible running safely and reliably on Friday, but with such strong winds expected we know that disruption to passengers' journeys is inevitable."

Great Western Railway said it expected to cut half of its services on Friday. The mainline in south Wales will be closed, with services terminating at Bristol Parkway, while some branch lines in Devon and Cornwall will also close.

Network Rail said disruption was likely to continue into the weekend, while tracks were cleared of debris and fallen trees.

Highways England urged drivers, particularly those driving high-sided lorries, caravans and motorcycles, to check the weather before setting off, especially in coastal and high-lying areas.

Major incidents have been declared in Cornwall, Gloucestershire and Avon and Somerset.

Council and emergency services staff in Gloucestershire and Avon and Somerset were due to knock on doors on Thursday afternoon to ensure people who need to evacuate from possible floods along the Severn Estuary can do so safely.

In Cornwall and Somerset, residents are being urged to stay at home and only travel on Friday if "absolutely necessary".

Both councils advised people to stay back from cliffs and seafronts due to the danger of large waves, with Cornwall warning of possible flooding during the high spring tides at about 06:00 GMT.

As well as the ten severe flood warnings, less serious flood warnings and alerts have been issued for other parts of England, Scotland and Wales.

In other developments:

• London, Cornwall, Breckland Council near Norfolk and Stoke-On-Trent City Council are opening emergency shelters for people sleeping rough
• Several councils said bin collections would be suspended on Friday
• Legoland in Windsor, the London Eye, the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew and Wakehurst, and RHS gardens, are among a number of tourist attractions to close
• The Prince of Wales cancelled a planned visit to Newport and Swansea as a result of the forecast
• A red weather warning has also been issued for Counties Kerry and Cork in the south west of the Republic of Ireland, from 03:00 until 08:00 on Friday. Schools in seven counties in the Irish Republic are closing

Some people were just recovering from Storm Dudley on Wednesday as they braced for Storm Eunice. On the Gower Peninsula in south-west Wales, David Walis and his wife Robbie Bartington said a huge oak tree had been toppled near one of the shelters in their animal sanctuary.

Mr Walis said they were "extremely worried" for their ponies and sheep in the upcoming storm.

Storm Dudley also left thousands of people in north-east England, Cumbria, North Yorkshire and Lancashire without power. Northern Powergrid said it had restored power to all of its more than 20,000 customers affected by the storm by Thursday evening.

In Scotland, all trains were cancelled on Wednesday evening but most lines were back up and running by Thursday morning.

A yellow warning for wind and snow is also in place for much of Northern Ireland, northern England and Scotland as far north as Glasgow from 03:00 until 18:00 on Friday.

The Met Office said some places could see 5cm (2in) of snow at low levels away from coasts, while there could be accumulations of up to 30cm for areas above 250m.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-60417263

[Backspin]

Chavnado

[malmomike77]

disappointing blow job up here

[Mendip]

My mum is in the red zone, just inland from the Somerset coast. She has an old shed in the garden that I was supposed to fix up last time I visited... so I hope that survives.

[harrybarracuda]

My mum is in the red zone, just inland from the Somerset coast. She has an old shed in the garden that I was supposed to fix up last time I visited... so I hope that survives.

But think how much easier it would be just to buy her a new one.

[malmomike77]

[Reg Dingle]

She has an old shed in the garden that I was supposed to fix up last time I visited... so I hope that survives

I think it's just landed in our garden.

Found a double A side of The Wurzels greatest hits, a special edition Cornish Razzle with Readers Sisters and a load of starched socks.

[Mendip]

^ Aah... I wouldn't touch the socks mate.

[Reg Dingle]

They smell a bit like Green Goblin.

[Stumpy]

We only have Mendy's feet to go by, but I'd hazmat bag'em then burn them for health and safety reasons.

[Mendip]

^ I wasn't using them for my feet, mate.

[Stumpy]

^ I wasn't using them for my feet, mate.

Well that's even scarier.... I wouldn't touch them. I'd just call HazMat and let them handle it....

[cyrille]

^^ LoL

[bsnub]

I wasn't using them for my feet, mate.

I thought Thai wives were supposed to take care of that for you?

[hallelujah]

^ I wasn't using them for my feet, mate.

You can probably stand them up on their own by now.

[Mendip]

^^ Not in me mum's garden shed mate...

^ They'd be so heavy it's amazing the shed still blew away!

[taxexile]

live from heathrow airport.

planes attempting to land during the storm.

[bsnub]

Not in me mum's garden shed mate...

That is the perfect place. When I was a kid, I had a girlfriend whose family owned a sizable amount of acreage. They had horses and a barn. She loved to get pounded on top of the straw bales out in the barn.

[bsnub]

live from heathrow airport.

Madness! Why are they even flying in that? Total incompetence.

[misskit]

^^^ Christ! Just watching those pilots land the huge aircraft in that wind makes me feel sick.

[hallelujah]

Madness! Why are they even flying in that? Total incompetence.

Surely the exact opposite, Snubs?

They're exceptionally good at their job and are trained to deal with conditions like this. I imagine they'll be having quite the conversation with other pilots in the hotel bars tonight though!

230,000 people around the world currently tuned into the stream!

[hallelujah]

Plane just landing from Los Angeles.

I bet the weather was a bit different there when they took off earlier on!

Edit. Didn't land. That and the little Prague plane have done a go around.

Great viewing!

[malmomike77]

Madness! Why are they even flying in that? Total incompetence.

Landed and taken off in worse on the Falklands, in Chile, Nepal and never again in Russia

EDIT

BA so terminal 5 and lots of ex-Mil pilots

[Reg Dingle]

That's a doddle compared to flying into St Helena's new Airport

First landing at St Helena airport takes three attempts | Daily Mail Online

[hallelujah]

It's all a bit calmer now cos they've got a headwind instead of a crosswind.

I reckon Nammers could put one of these down now while eating his pot of jellied eels and singing knees up Mother Brown.