Storm 'Eunice', one of the most powerful to hit Britain for many years currently over the Irish Republic, will move quickly across the North of England today.
Storm 'Eunice', one of the most powerful to hit Britain for many years currently over the Irish Republic, will move quickly across the North of England today. It's already causing problems in the West that'll transfer eastwards through the day. There are rare threat to life Met Office red warnings for the Severn Estuary where you'll bear the brunt of the storm with gusts up to 90mph and across the South East where 60 to 80mph gusts are likely. In addition are amber warnings for strong winds over central and southern parts and a yellow warning for snow for a large swathe of Scotland.
After Wednesday evenings full moon, the storm is also coinciding with high spring tides, enhancing the risk of coastal flooding from storm surges, especially around the Severn Estuary and into the Bristol Channel in the next few hours, putting life and property at risk. Many flood warnings to this effect have been issued.
As the storm quickly tracks across the North of England, squally damaging winds on its southern flank could produce gusts of 70 even up to 80mph, especially later this morning into the afternoon. This'll lead to more fallen trees, structural damage and inevitably further power outages seriously disrupting travel. So please don't travel unless you have to. Snow across Scotland, even at lower levels, is an additional hazard, with blizzards, especially over the Southern Uplands where up to 30cms of snow could fall in a short space of time, blocking roads. There's also been snow over parts of North East England, the Cumbrian Fells and Pennines, but this should be a temporary affair.
For England and Wales, it'll be a day of quickly passing blustery showers, heavy and squally in places giving driving rain. Hail and even a crack of thunder is likely locally, accompanied by violent gusts of wind from the South West or West in excess of 70mph. Across the far North of Scotland, you may miss the worst of the storm, with just a scattering of wintry showers here. Despite the horrendous conditions for most, temperatures reach 8 to 11C across the South and much of the Midlands, but only 2 to 5C over Scotland in a raw and strong northerly wind.
Storm 'Eunice' moves rapidly on across the North Sea to Denmark after dark, leaving us as quickly as it came. It'll remain stormy for a while, though, into the evening with more damaging gusts, especially across northern England, before a severe North West or Westerly gale moderates overnight. This'll bring further quickly passing blustery showers some heavy, squally and wintry to the North, mainly giving hill snow. Clear spells are likely, though, especially in the East and South and later in the night, as winds ease and the showers fade. It'll feel cold and raw, though with a slight frost, particularly in sheltered spots by dawn. Lowest temperatures -2 to +3C.
Although starting brightly with a little sunshine tomorrow morning in central and eastern areas allowing clear up operations to begin, more rain or showers will move in from the West later. A lighter South West or southerly breeze will be a blessing, with maximum temperatures about 5 to 7C in the North and around 8 or 9C elsewhere.
The showers clear Saturday evening but only to be followed from the West by yet another Atlantic system. This'll bring more cloud, rain and a freshening South West or southerly wind, that'll probably have spread to most parts by morning as the weather remains in a very unsettled mood.
