Rare red weather warning issued in Scotland as Storm Babet batters UK

A new amber warning for rain has been issued for parts of northern England, the Midlands and Wales, and a rare red warning is in place for Scotland.

Parts of the UK could be cut off by flooding as Storm Babet batters the country, with a rare red weather warning issued for Scotland (Andrew Milligan/PA) (PA Wire)

Parts of the UK could be cut off by flooding as Storm Babet batters the country, the Met Office has warned.

A new amber warning for rain has been issued for parts of northern England, the Midlands and Wales, and a rare red weather warning is in place in Scotland.

The red Met Office warning says that from 6pm there is “danger to life from fast-flowing or deep floodwater” in Aberdeenshire and Angus in eastern Scotland, with extensive road closures expected.

Storm Babet is expected to bring 70mph gusts and more than a month’s worth of rain in the worst-affected regions of the UK on Thursday.

Met Office spokeswoman Nicola Maxey told the PA news agency: “Within that warning area you could see 100mm-150mm (4in-6in) of rain quite widely, but then some locations could see as much as 200mm-250mm (8in-10in) of rain.

“The 30-year average for October rainfall in eastern Scotland is 129.53mm (5in). So some of those figures that are in the warning areas are certainly more than the average rainfall for the month in eastern Scotland.”

The RNLI is warning people in Scotland to stay away from the coast during the storm, stressing the risk of being washed into the sea, and Scottish Water has said staff are on stand-by as sewers could flood.

The amber weather warning covering “the spine of the country” is in place from noon on Friday to 6am on Saturday due to persistent heavy rain.

Up to 4.7in (120mm) of rain could fall within that warning area and the Met Office has said homes and businesses are likely to be flooded and some communities could be cut off by flooded roads.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency had eight flood warnings in place as of 11am on Thursday, along with 14 flood alerts.

Under the Met Office’s amber warning, between 1.6in (40mm) and 2.4in (60mm) of rain is likely, with the potential for between 3.2in (80mm) and 4.7in (120mm) on higher ground.

There may be power outages in Scotland and some areas could be cut off for days, with people urged to check for flood updates, avoid travel and expect school closures.

Angus Council said schools will close at lunchtime on Thursday and remain shut on Friday to “ensure the safety of children, young people, parents, and school staff”.

Mass train cancellations have been imposed by ScotRail, expected to last from Thursday until Saturday.

It is the first red warning for rain issued in the UK since Storm Dennis in February 2020.

An amber wind warning has also been issued for parts of eastern Scotland.

Storm Babet hit Ireland on Wednesday after sweeping in from the Atlantic, with heavy rain causing extensive flooding in parts of the country.

Members of the Irish Defence Forces were deployed in the town of Midleton, Co Cork, where more than 100 properties were flooded.

Cork County Council said more than a month’s worth of rain had fallen in the space of 24 hours, leading to unprecedented flooding, saturated land and high river levels across the county.

Large swathes of already-saturated Scotland, Northern Ireland, and northern and eastern England will also see strong winds and heavy rain on Thursday, with yellow severe weather warnings issued through to Saturday.

Storm Babet, a complex area of low pressure which developed to the west of the Iberian peninsula, was named by the Met Office on Monday morning.