UK weather: Storm Dudley threatens travel chaos and ‘danger to life’ as Britain braces for 90mph winds today

Met Office warns of flying debris and power cuts while rail services cancelled as nation prepares for first of two storms

Storms Dudley and Eunice are set to batter the whole of the UK with winds up to 90mph (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

The UK faces travel chaos today as Storm Dudley brings 90mph to large parts of the country.

A number of rail services have been already cancelled ahead of the storm’s expected arrival this afternoon.

The Met Office has issued a “danger to life warning” posed by flying debris and falling trees, while motorists are being urged to avoid unnecessary journeys as powerful gales are expected to cause travel disruption.

Scotland, northern England and Northern Ireland will bear the brunt of the storm when it hits on Wednesday afternoon, before a second, Storm Eunice, arrives on Friday.

Train services in parts of Scotland have been cancelled from 4pm on Wednesday for safety reasons.

ScotRail said services in the far north, Kyle of Lochalsh, and Aberdeen-Inverness lines will continue to run as usual since the areas are outside the boundaries of the weather warning.

Scotland’s deputy first minister John Swinney warned the coming days would be “very challenging” as the country grapples with the two storms.

An amber weather warning for Storm Dudley covers northern England, central and southern Scotland, and the tip of Northern Ireland from 4pm until midnight on Wednesday when “very strong and disruptive winds” are expected.

A yellow warning, covering further south towards Birmingham as well as much of Wales and Northern Ireland, will last from 3pm on Wednesday until 6am on Thursday.

A third yellow wind warning covers all of England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and the lower part of Scotland throughout Friday until 9pm.

Weather warnings for wind have been issued for much of the UK on Wednesday ahead of Storms Dudley and Eunice (Met Office)

Weather warnings for wind have been issued for much of the UK on Friday ahead of Storm Eunice (Met Office)

Forecasters have warned powerful winds could be accompanied by heavy rain, snow and potential blizzard conditions over northern England, parts of Scotland, Northern Ireland and north Wales on Friday.

The Met Office said injuries and danger to life were likely from large waves and beach material being thrown onto coastal roads, seafronts and properties.

Motorists have been urged to drive carefully, while electricity supply firms have issued warnings following the widespread outages in northern England and Scotland which followed storms earlier this year.

A dog walker on Whitley bay beach as big waves hit the shoreline on 15 February 2022 (Owen Humphreys/PA)

Storm Dudley is expected to bring gusts of up to 80-90mph on exposed coasts and hills of Scotland, with 60-70mph possible further inland.

Met Office forecaster Alex Deakin warned people in the affected areas to brace for “heavy rain and ever-strengthening winds”.

“It’s going to be a windy day throughout with those winds continuing to pick up through the afternoon and the evening,” he said.

“There will be some snow on the hills across Scotland, but it’s the rain and more particularly the wind we’re concerned about in this storm system on Wednesday.”

“It’s likely to cause transport disruption and dangerous conditions by the sea.”

A woman battles with her umbrella on Westminster Bridge, London, in high winds and rain in the capital on 15 February 2022 (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Following a meeting of the Scottish government’s Resilience Room, deputy first minister Mr Swinney said they would continue to monitor the situation as the storms approach.

“We expect another period of disruption this week, with Storms Dudley and Eunice set to bring strong winds to Scotland,” he said.

“High winds may cause issues on roads and bridges, disruption to power supplies and danger from falling trees.

“We would urge everyone to plan their journeys in advance, exercise caution on the roads, and follow the latest travel advice.”

Additional reporting by Press Association