THOUSANDS are without power and the Merseyside Derby has been canceled as Storm Darragh batters Britain with 93km/h winds.
Britons have been urged to stay at home due to a rare red alert – flights and trains are banned.
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An airport bus crashed in Northern Ireland this morning
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A fallen tree smashed a car windscreen in Cardiff this morningCredit: WNS
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The Met Office has issued a red warningCredit: Met Office
An emergency warning came into effect at 1am for people covered by a red wind warning in parts of Wales and south-west England.
It was the biggest use of the warning system to date, with the warning urging residents to avoid driving and “stay indoors if you can”.
Wind gusts of up to 92 mph were reported overnight at Capel Curig in North Wales and Aberdaron on the Llyn Peninsula.
Wind gusts between 72-78 mph were reported along the coasts of Wales and Northern Ireland.
Today’s Merseyside derby between Liverpool and Everton has been postponed due to the storm, the clubs have announced.
Thousands of people across Northern Ireland, England and Wales have been left without power as they brace for the storm to hit.
As of 5am, National Grid reported more than 12,600 properties were without power in the Midlands and South West.
Chaos on the train
- Northern services between Leeds and Wakefield Westgate are expected to be disrupted by the end of the day
- Bad weather and Storm Darragh will affect Avanti West Coast services
- Bad weather and Storm Darragh will affect crosscountry services
- Bad weather and Storm Darragh will affect Great Western Railway services
- Bad weather and Storm Darragh will affect services on London North Western Rail and West Midlands Rail
- Bad weather and Storm Darragh will affect LNER services
- Bad weather and Storm Darragh will affect Merseyrail
- Bad weather and Storm Darragh are affecting northern services
- Bad weather and Storm Darragh affect ScotRail services
- Bad weather and Storm Darragh will affect South Western Rail services
- Bad weather and Storm Darragh will affect TransPennine Express services
- Bad weather and Storm Darragh are affecting transport services for Wales
More than 20,000 homes have been cut off in Wales, the spokesman added.
A note on the Northern Ireland Electricity Network website said the authority was unable to provide an estimated restoration time.
“Due to the number of outages we are currently experiencing on the network, we are currently unable to provide an estimated time when your power supply will be restored,” it said.
“We are working to restock as quickly and safely as possible.”
Both the Prince of Wales Bridge, M4, and the Severn Bridge, M48, which connect south-west England to Wales, were closed due to high winds.
Network Rail Wales said all train services west of Cardiff have been suspended until further notice due to fallen trees blocking the line.
National Highways said the QEII bridge at Dartford Crossing in south-east England was also closed due to high winds.
In the West Midlands, the A5 is closed between the B5070 at Gledrid and the A483 at Halton due to high winds.
The Bureau of Meteorology issued a red weather warning – the most serious – for wind on Friday.
This means that hazardous weather conditions are expected and people are being urged to take measures to protect themselves and others.
The warning, which has led to the cancellation of events including Christmas attractions, is in place from 3am until 11am on Saturday.
The Met Office has warned of “damaging winds” with gusts of 90mph possible over the coasts and hills of west and south Wales.
Forecasters say the strongest winds will begin to ease from late morning.
The Cabinet Office’s emergency system sent a message to every compatible mobile phone in the affected areas.
The alert contained information about the red alert and instructions on how to stay safe on Saturday.
Cell phones made a loud siren-like sound even if they were set to silent, and the sound and vibration lasted for about 10 seconds.
But some people claim they didn’t receive a warning.
Government warning
It is understood that people will receive an alert if they live in the following areas:
- Devon
- Bath
- North East Somerset
- City of Bristol
- North Somerset
- South Gloucestershire
- Somerset
- Isle of Anglesey
- Gwynedd
- Conwy
- Ceredigion
- Pembrokeshire
- Carmarthenshire
- Swansea
- Neath Port Talbot
- Bridgend
- Vale of Glamorgan
- Cardiff
- Monmouthshire
- Newport
A Cabinet spokesman added: “The UK Government has well-rehearsed plans for severe winter conditions.
“It works with teams from devolved governments, local authorities, emergency services and other public bodies to co-ordinate the response to any disruptions.”
Speaking to Sky News, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds described the storm as a “challenging situation”.
He added: “Around three million homes will have an emergency alert system on their mobile phones.
“I would just encourage anyone who has had it to take the advice.”
National Grid is responding to 20,000 homes without power, Mr. Reynolds.
He said staff “will be on standby for any further challenges throughout the rest of the day”.
Reynolds added: “Wherever you can, stay inside, stay out of harm’s way and just follow advice at all times.”
A separate amber warning covering much of the west coast of the UK.
An amber warning zone extends from southern Scotland to Cornwall, with Northern Ireland in force from 1am to 9pm.
Flying debris and falling trees can be life threatening as large waves.
Material from the beach could be dumped on coastal roads and shorelines, forecasters said.
There could also be damage to buildings and homes, with roofs blown off and power lines down.
Power restrictions may affect other services such as mobile phone coverage.
Dublin Airport welcomed a number of flights bound for other airports and diverted them due to the storm.
Numerous British Airways flights to and from Heathrow, Paris, the United States and the Netherlands were also cancelled.
Darragh is also expected to bring heavy rain over the weekend, with more than 120 flood warnings in place this morning.
A yellow rain warning is in place in Wales today from 3am to 6pm.
Heavy rain is likely to lead to traffic and infrastructure disruptions.
A yellow rain warning is in effect for Northern Ireland and Wales, as well as parts of Scotland until midday.
The Met Office said 20-30mm was likely to fall in three to six hours during all-day spells of heavy rain in south and mid Wales.
A total of 80-90mm is possible by the time it starts to clear in the evening.
National Rail said the storm was likely to affect services across the network.
A spokesman advised people to check their journey fully before travelling.
The last services of the day may be canceled and passengers may not reach their destination.
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A motorist was stuck in 4ft floodwaters in Essex yesterdayCredit: Stephen Huntley/HVC
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Storm Darragh whips up waves on the Cornwall coast
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Storm Darragh to hit west coastCredit: MET Office
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The state’s emergency telephone alert reached three million Britons last night
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