Map reveals exact areas hit by SNOW & ice warnings as Met Office urges ‘be prepared’ & Storm Eowyn clean up begins
THE Met Office have urged Brits to “be prepared” with a number of snow and ice warnings issued.
It comes after Storm Eowyn battered the country with powerful 114mph gales, causing widespread devastation and claiming one life.
Travel chaos is expected to continue into the weekend after at least 1,070 flights were axed and 150,000 passengers affected on Friday.
Several yellow weather warnings have been issued by the Met Office over Saturday and Sunday.
Four yellow warnings for wind, snow and ice remain in place this morning after an amber alert expired.
A snow and ice warning across more southern and eastern parts of Scotland will be lifted at 11am.
Yellow snow and ice warnings are in place in Northern Ireland until 10am on Saturday and in Scotland until 11am, with injuries from slips and falls on icy surfaces possible.
Up to 10cm of snow could develop on high ground in Scotland throughout the morning.
A yellow ice warning covering parts of south-west England, the Midlands and southern and mid-Wales will be in place from 3am to 10am.
The Met Office said that icy stretches will lead to hazardous conditions on Saturday.
On Sunday, a yellow wind warning covering south-west England, English and Scottish coasts around the Irish Sea, Wales and Northern Ireland will be in place from 8am to 3pm.
Gusts of 50 to 60mph are expected widely in the warning area.
A yellow rain warning covering southern and central England and Wales will also be in place from 8am on Sunday to 6am on Monday.
Some places could see up to 80mm of rainfall over the period from two separate spells of heavy rain and thundery showers, while 10 to 20mm should fall quite widely and 30 to 50mm could fall over high ground.
Flooding to homes and businesses could occur in the warning area, with power cuts and difficult driving conditions also possible.
There is also a “small chance” of fast flowing or deep floodwater causing danger to life, the Met Office said.
Met Office meteorologist Jonathan Vautrey said: “Looking at Sunday, it’s set to be a fairly fine start for a lot of areas – another ridge of high pressure building in to keep things fairly settled, with some sunny spells in there.
“The cloud, though, is going to be building as we see a low pressure system move into the South West.
“This will be bringing heavy rain in for south-west England and Wales from sort of mid-morning onwards, and then that will spread into Northern Ireland and northern England as we head later on into the afternoon.
“Winds will also be picking up with this feature. Certainly, it’s not going to be as strong as Storm Eowyn.
“However, because it’s coming in from the South West, it’s going to be actually more southern areas of England that are going to see the strongest wind gusts compared to what has mostly been further towards the north.”
An amber wind warning covering northern Scotland expired at 6am on Saturday, while a yellow wind warning covering the majority of Scotland will be in place until 3pm.
Those in the warning areas have been advised to secure loose items such as bins, garden furniture and trampolines outside their homes.
UK 5 day weather forecast
Today
Remaining very windy in northern Scotland and still blustery in western coastal regions.
Sunshine for many but heavy showers in the north and west. Turning cloudier across Northern Ireland with a band of rain and squally winds through the afternoon.
Tonight
Largely dry to start with a band of cloud and rain moving eastwards overnight.
Showery and heavy for a time with squally winds, and the risk of hail and thunder.
Sunday
A fine morning for many but turning increasingly unsettled from the west with heavy rain and strong winds sweeping northeastwards, with the risk of gales in the southwest.
Monday to Wednesday
Remaining unsettled both Monday and Tuesday with showers or longer spells of rain around, windy.
Similar on Wednesday with strengthening winds and heavy rain arriving later. Near normal temperatures.
It comes after winds reached 100mph on Friday as the storm left one person dead, more than a million people without power and caused significant travel disruption across the UK and Ireland.
A man in Ireland yesterday became the first confirmed storm-related death after a tree fell on his car at 5:30am at Feddyglass in Raphoe.
Shocking footage showed the shocking moment a flying shed swept up in Storm Eowyn almost hit a mum and daughter.
Louise Haggarty was leaving her house in Wrexham, North Wales, to take nine-year-old Lily to school on Friday.
A neighbour’s CCTV camera captured footage of the metal structure hurling through the air.
Network Rail Scotland said nearly 400 “incidents of damage” have been found including more than 120 reports of fallen trees following Storm Eowyn.
It said on X: “Almost 400 incidents of damage have been found since the storm passed, disruption is likely until at least midday.
“So far, we’ve seen over 120 reports of fallen trees across Scotland, along with damage to signalling systems, overhead wires, stations, boundary fencing, level crossings and even train depots suffering damage.”
However, the railway line between Edinburgh and Newcastle has re-opened in the wake of Storm Eowyn, Network Rail Scotland has said.