Storm Darragh live: wind batters UK and Ireland as Met Office issues rare red ‘danger to life’ warning | UK weather
Key events
The Met Office has provided a list of tips on how to stay safe in strong winds, from safe driving to protecting your home from damage.
You can read it here.
As well as strong winds, Darragh is also expected to bring heavy rain over the weekend, with more than 120 flood warnings in place this morning.
An amber rain warning is in place for Wales from 3am until 6pm on Saturday, with heavy rain likely to cause disruption to transport and infrastructure.
The Welsh FA has postponed all Saturday matches
The Football Association of Wales said all matches across the country had been postponed on Saturday due to Storm Darragh, following advice from the Met Office.
“It is not safe to drive in such weather, including traveling to and from football matches,” the association said in a statement on its website.
“Clubs have been advised to check and secure any loose items around their grounds if this can be done safely. This includes bins, furniture, door posts and fences, etc.
It said any postponement of Sunday’s games would be considered “on a case-by-case basis, in accordance with each league’s policy.”
In the Championship, Cardiff City’s home game against Watford on Saturday was also postponed on Friday night “in the interest of supporter safety”, the club said on its website, with no new date for the fixture yet.
“All match tickets purchased for this match will remain valid for the rearranged date,” the club said.
Thousands were left without power
Thousands of people across Northern Ireland, England and Wales are without power as they brace for the impact of Storm Darragh.
As of 5am, National Grid said more than 12,600 premises had lost power in the Midlands and South West, and more than 20,000 homes were without power in Wales.
A note on the Northern Ireland Electricity Network website said the authority was unable to provide estimated restoration times.
“Due to the number of outages we are currently experiencing on the network, we are unable to provide an estimated time to restore your electrical power at this time,” it said.
“We are working to restore supplies as quickly and safely as possible.”
Irish residents urged to take red warnings ‘extremely seriously’
Seven counties in the Republic of Ireland have issued a red wind warning overnight.
Airports warned of potential disruption and some ferries were cancelled. A number of holiday events were also canceled over the weekend.
Met Eireann’s highest alert level covers counties Mayo, Clare, Galway, Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo and Wicklow.
Taoiseach Simon Harris urged those living in areas covered by red alerts to take them “extremely seriously”.
“The red weather warning means don’t travel during this period and even though it’s Friday night and the Christmas season is approaching, I would really encourage people to heed this advice and really follow the weather advice carefully in the hours ahead,” said he.
“Of course there is an orange weather warning for the rest of the country as well. So really people in this area should avoid any unnecessary travel altogether. It is important that people take these warnings very, very seriously in terms of protecting life in the coming hours.
In Mayo, the warning came into effect at 9pm on Friday and remains in place until 3am. For Clare and Galway, the alert is in force from 9pm to 2am. In Donegal, Leitrim and Sligo the warning came into force at 10pm and is in place until 3am. A red warning for Wicklow is in place from 1am to 6am on Saturday.
ESB Networks said strong winds were expected to cause damage to electricity infrastructure, particularly in counties subject to red warnings.
The rest of the Republic of Ireland will be covered by a Met Eireann orange wind warning. In Munster and Connacht, this warning came into effect at 8:00 PM on Friday and will last until 10:00 AM on Saturday.
Bridges were closed and rail, ferry and air services were disrupted
Both the Prince of Wales Bridge, M4, and the Severn Bridge, M48, which link south-west England to Wales, were closed due to high winds caused by Darragh, National Highways said.
Dublin Airport has confirmed it has welcomed a number of flights bound for other airports which have been diverted due to the storm.
A number of British Airways flights to and from Heathrow, Paris, the US and the Netherlands were also cancelled.
Network Rail Wales said all train services west of Cardiff have been suspended until further notice due to falling trees blocking the line.
National Rail said Storm Darragh is likely to affect services across the network, advising people to check their journeys fully before travelling, as it could mean the last services of the day are canceled and passengers may not reach their destination you are
You can find details of disruptions to national rail services here.
Chiltern Railways has advised customers to only travel if absolutely necessary on Saturday, with significant network disruption expected.
It will run on a reduced schedule with one train per hour in all directions. Chiltern said customers with Saturday tickets could use them on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday instead.
Stena Line said the storm would “impact” some sailings in the coming days and Bristol Airport said disruption was expected.
“Passengers are advised to check with their airline before travelling,” said a warning on Bristol Airport’s website.
Three million people receive an emergency alert by mobile phone
The Cabinet Office issued an emergency alert at 6.45pm on Friday to 3 million people in areas covered by the Met Office’s rare red wind warning for parts of Wales and south-west England.
The emergency alert system sent a message to every compatible cell phone in the affected areas containing information about the red alert and guidance on how to stay safe on Saturday.
This includes a line that reads: “Strong winds can cause flying debris, falling trees and large waves around coastal areas, all of which can be life-threatening. Stay indoors if you can. It is not safe to drive in these conditions.’
This was the largest use of the emergency warning system outside of a test scenario – the last test was in April 2023.
Means residents in Devon, Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol City, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Somerset, Isle of Anglesey, Gwynedd, Conwy, Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Swansea, Neath Port Talbot, Bridgend, Vale of Glamorgan, Cardiff, Monmouthshire and Newport received a warning.
Cell phones made a loud siren-like sound even if they were set to silent. The sound and vibration lasted for about 10 seconds.
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 warned of possible “damaging winds” with gusts of 90mph (145km/h) over the coast and hills of west and south Wales. Forecasters say the strongest winds will begin to ease from late morning.
A ‘Danger to Life’ warning has been issued for parts of the UK because of Storm Darragh
Jamie Grierson
A red wind warning signaling ‘danger to life’ has been issued by the Met Office for parts of Wales and the south west England when Storm Dara hit the UK.
Gusts of 90 mph (145 km/h) or more are possible over coasts and hills to the west and south Walesas well as crossing the Bristol Channel with some very large waves on open beaches, the forecaster said.
The rare red warning was in effect from 3 a.m. to 11 a.m. Saturday and signaled a danger to life due to flying debris and falling trees.
An amber wind warning has already been put in place for large parts of the UK, with possible power cuts and flying debris amid the arrival of Storm Darragh, the fourth named storm of the season.
An amber warning for “potentially damaging” winds was in place on Saturday from 1am to 9pm for the west coast of the UK from South Ayrshire in Scotland to Cornwallas well as in Northern Ireland.
Yellow warnings for wind and rain on Thursday for parts of Northern Ireland, Wales, Scotland and England were extended to cover the North East and South of England on Friday.
Flying debris could cause injury or danger to life, and buildings could be damaged, such as shingles blown off roofs, the weather service said. Power outages and large waves are to be expected, and some roads and bridges may be closed, with falling trees an additional hazard.
National Highways, which runs the UK’s motorways and busiest A roads, issued a severe weather warning for Saturday and warned drivers in the South West and North West to prepare for gale force winds.
He said routes likely to be affected by the strongest winds included the M5 in north Somerset, the A30 in Cornwall and the M6 in Cheshire.
Strong winds are already affecting travel in parts of the UK, with the M48 Severn Bridge in Gloucestershire closed on Thursday evening due to stormy weather.
A yellow rain warning will be in place for Northern Ireland and Wales, which were badly hit by flooding during Storm Bert, from 3pm on Friday until 12pm on Saturday.
Up to 60mm of rain could fall in these areas during the warning period, which could lead to some flooding and disruption, forecasters said.
