Met Office issues danger-to-life yellow weather warning as winds of up to 80mph expected in UK
Winds of up to 80mph and heavy rain have been predicted to hit the UK this week as a swathe of the UK face stormy conditions.
The Met Office has warned there could be a “small chance of injuries and danger to life from flying debris” as a spell of strong winds is expected to move north-east through Wednesday, potentially leading to power cuts, damage to buildings and cancellations to public transport services.
A yellow weather wind warning has been put in place by the weather service forecaster from 10am on Wednesday to 7am on Thursday, covering Wales, Northern Ireland, parts of the South West coast, the West Midlands, parts of the East Midlands, the North East and North West and a large swathe of Scotland.
The low-pressure system has not yet been named officially, but if its severity increases to the level of a storm, it is expected to be called Agnes and will become the first named storm of the autumn and winter season.
Mark Sidaway, deputy chief meteorologist at the Met Office, said: “A deep area of low pressure is expected to approach southwest Ireland early on Wednesday, and track across northern parts of the UK before clearing early Thursday.
“There is some uncertainty on the precise track and strength of this weather system, however the most likely outcome at present is for a wide swathe of 50 to 60mph gusts affecting inland areas.
“A yellow warning for wind has been issued for much of the country from 10am on Wednesday to 7am on Thursday. Some Irish Sea coasts could see gusts of 65 to 75 mph, with a small chance of 80mph gusts on the most exposed coasts and headlands.”
What is the weather forecast for this week?
Monday is expected to be dry with sunny spells and lighter winds across the south and the Midlands, with highs of 20C in London and 19C in Birmingham. Further north it is predicted to be windy, with scattered showers.
Tuesday is expected to see showers and longer spells of rain for Northern Ireland and north-western Scotland which could then move eastwards. The forecast remains dry and cloudy with sunny spells for the South and Midlands, with temperatures rising to the early 20s.
On Wednesday conditions are forecast to take a turn for the worse, with heavy rain and strong winds causing disruption on that day and Thurday.
Friday is predicted to see a return to more settled weather.
