O2 Arena roof in shreds after Storm Eunice causes damage around the country
The UK is facing a third storm in four days as Storm Franklin has been officially named.
The Met Office announced this morning that the more strong winds and heavy rain are set to batter parts of the country on Sunday and Monday.
It comes hot on the heels of Storm Eunice and Storm Dudley earlier this week, which saw gales of up to 122mph cause damage and travel chaos across the UK and Ireland.
Four people died in Storm Eunice, which hit on Friday and has caused an estimated £300,000 worth of damage, while tens of thousands of homes are still without power.
New amber and yellow weather warnings are now in place as the bad weather looks set to continue into next week.
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1645365638Greater Manchester: Two severe flood warnings issued
People in Greater Manchester are being urged to prepare for the risk of severe floods in the region.
Greater Manchester is one of the areas in the North that is expected to see heavy downpours today and tomorrow.
Yellow weather warnings have been issued by the Met Office for the county for heavy rain and strong winds.
Just after noon today, the Environment Agency has issued two severe flood warnings as a result of the high risk that two rivers will burst their banks as a result of snow that fell this weekend melting, and the heavy rain.
The flood warnings have been issued for the River Mersey at East Didsbury, and the River Mersey at West Didsbury and Northenden.
Lamiat Sabin20 February 2022 14:00
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Power cuts ‘increase fire and carbon monoxide poisioning risks’
Power cuts during Storm Eunice have seen the number of carbon monoxide incidents and fire near-misses increase, firefighters warn.
Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service said there was a number of dangerous near-misses in the areas it serves.
On Saturday, firefighters were called to a home where someone lit a gas barbecue indoors to warm up and cook food.
A carbon monoxide alarm alerted the residents to dangerous levels of the deadly gas and they were able to escape.
Just a few doors away, a resident was asleep upstairs in their home and a gas fire with a number of candles were left unattended downstairs.
Wayne Rawlins, Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service, said that torches or battery-powered lights should be used in power cuts, and that any candles should be in heat-proof candle holders away from objects – and never left unattended.
He added: “Barbecues should never be used indoors. They are not designed for this and should only be used in well-ventilated outdoor areas.
“… If you, or someone you know, is without power, please share this advice with them to help them stay safe until their power is restored.”
Lamiat Sabin20 February 2022 13:30
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‘First time’ Met Office recorded three storms in less than a week
The Met Office recording three major storms in the space of days is unprecedented in the seven years since the storm naming system was introduced.
Meteorologist Becky Mitchell said: “This is the first time we have had three named storms within a week, and we started the storm naming system in 2015.
“At the moment we’ve got a really active jet stream, which is why we’re seeing so many storms track right towards the UK.
“We had Dudley on Wednesday, Eunice on Friday and Franklin today.”
Lamiat Sabin20 February 2022 12:45
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East Anglia, London, and southeast ‘to see winds up to 60 mph’
The east of England will see winds up to 50 mph, increasing to about 60 mph on exposed coasts – a forecaster has said.
BBC’s Elizabeth Rizzini said that these wind speeds would be recorded in East Anglia, London, and the southeast.
Lamiat Sabin20 February 2022 12:15
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Storm Franklin: Amber warning for north of Ireland
An amber warning has been issued for Northern Ireland, which is expected to sustain the worst of Storm Franklin.
Inland areas, particularly in the north and northwest, could be hit by winds up to 70 mph – and up to 80 mph on the coast – Met Office said.
Elsewhere on the island of Ireland, the west coast of the Republic will be affected by “near gale force winds” from Sunday night, according to Met Eireann.
The very strong winds will continue into Monday morning before easing by the afternoon, the meteorologists have predicted.
Lamiat Sabin20 February 2022 11:45
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How will Storm Franklin affect the UK and Ireland?
Storm Franklin is expected to cause more damage and destruction in the wake of two earlier storms, meteorologists have predicted.
Most parts of the UK will see strong winds, with northern England to also see heavy rain, from today to tomorrow morning.
Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland will see the worst of Storm Franklin, with very strong winds that could pose risk of injury or death from falling debris – the Met Office warned.
Inland areas in Northern Ireland, particularly in the north and northwest, could be hit by winds up to 70 mph – and up to 80 mph on the coast – it added.
A number of flood warnings have also been issued for England, Scotland, and Wales.
Read the full story here:
Lamiat Sabin20 February 2022 11:18
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Storm Franklin officially named by Met Office
Storm Franklin is set to strike the UK on Sunday just two days after Storm Eunice destroyed buildings and left 1.4 million homes without power.
The Met Office has issued an amber warning for wind which could cause “travel delays, road and rail closures, power cuts and the potential risk to life and property” in Northern Ireland.
Milder yellow warnings for wind also cover Wales and most of England from midday until 3pm, and the North West and Northern Ireland from midday until midnight.
Identical wind warnings have been issued for Monday.
Environment agencies have also issued hundreds of alerts for flooding across the UK.
This comes just two days after Storm Eunice caused what providers believe was a record national outage over a 24-hour period on Friday, with around 1.4 million homes affected.
Some 83,000 people were still without power on Sunday morning, according to the Energy Networks Association.
The Environment Agency has issued 44 flood warnings where “flooding is likely” for locations mainly in the north and west of England, and 117 alerts where “flooding is possible” for the north-western half of the UK, London and the south coast.
Some 18 flood warnings and seven alerts have also been issued across the Scottish Borders, Ayrshire, Orkney and the Western Isles by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.
Natural Resources Wales has issued six flood warnings for areas just east of Shrewsbury, and 25 alerts covering much of the country.
Sam Rkaina20 February 2022 10:13
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When do the yellow weather warnings come into force?
The Met Office has put yellow weather warnings in place for most parts of the UK today.
Almost all of the country, except for the North East of England and Scotland has a warning in place for strong winds – that are forecast to start about noon today until the same time on Monday.
Parts of Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancaster, Merseyside, north Staffordshire, and Yorkshire also have a warning in place for heavy rain. The warning came into force from midnight today to 6pm.
Lamiat Sabin20 February 2022 10:00
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Forecasters warn of a second wave of power outages
Winds up to 80 mph could result in another wave of power cuts this week, according to forecasters.
Some 155,000 households were still without power on Sunday evening following Storm Eunice.
About 1.3 million homes in total had no electricity because of the destruction caused by strong winds.
As well as more power cuts, flooding is also expected in parts of the north of England.
Emily Atkinson has the full picture:
Lamiat Sabin20 February 2022 09:30
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Sixteen people killed by Storm Eunice in whole of Europe – report
At least 16 people reportedly died as a result of Storm Eunice in Europe.
The deaths occured in the British Isles (UK and Ireland), the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Poland.
Operations to clean-up the destruction left by the storm and to restore power to millions of affected homes have been underway.
Lamiat Sabin20 February 2022 09:00
https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/uk-weather-storm-franklin-tracker-forecast-b2019124.html
