Weather: Ireland And UK Battered By Storms

Storms with 100mph winds battered Britain and Ireland last night, causing flights to be diverted and downing trees - as more flood warnings were issued.

Days after heavy rain and gales lashed the UK, disrupting the Christmas travel plans of thousands of people, the Met Office has once again issued severe weather warnings.

The Environment Agency map showing flood warnings and alerts in the UK

Southeastern trains said it would not be running any services until further notice, while Virgin, East Coast and Southern trains also warned of travel disruption.

Flights were also diverted and cancelled overnight, with Dublin Airport not allowing aircraft to leave due to the gale force winds.

A tweet from the airport said: "No flight departures so far this morning due to gale force winds blowing across both runways."

Cheshire Police said many trees had been uprooted as gales swept across the county.

"Many trees down due to strong winds. We would ask all drivers to exercise extreme caution whilst driving tonight," the force tweeted.

The Bognor Regis rail route was closed after this landslip at Ockley

The storm is forecast to spread east across the UK during the morning, with the worst-affected areas expected to be northern England and northern parts of Wales.

:: Watch Sky News to see weather forecasts on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.

This landslip also blocked the line on the Brighton Main Line near Redhill

Police and fire services across the country have reported road closures because of uprooted trees, and in the Irish Republic, Dublin Airport had to divert six planes because of strong winds.

Gatwick Airport said it had "additional teams of engineers, electrical staff and volunteers at the airport to minimise the risk of disruption".

The Environment Agency (EA) is warning of more "significant disruption" across southern England.

A spokesperson for the agency said: "It is possible that heavy rain may worsen the current flooding situation in some areas with rivers responding quickly to rain falling on already saturated ground."

The rain will exacerbate ongoing river flooding across the Somerset Levels, River Severn, River Thames and River Ouse in Cambridgeshire and rivers across Essex.

It will also worsen the situation along the River Medway and the Kentish Stour around Ashford and Canterbury.

A man removes items from his home after flooding in Tonbridge

There are 52 flood warnings and 160 flood alerts in place, but the EA said the number of alerts may increase as rivers respond to the further band of rainfall.

The Met Office recorded a gust of wind in Aberdaron, in west Wales, of 109mph early this morning.

General wind speeds of between 60mph and 80mph are expected in the UK.

A man paddles his canoe past a flooded property in Yalding

More than 43,000 people were left without power following Monday night's storm and around 1,200 properties were flooded in England.

According to ESB Networks, in Ireland, some 70,000 homes and businesses are understood to be without power with engineers dealing with hundreds of individual faults.

AA Roadwatch described driving conditions on Ireland's country roads as "treacherous" - and advised motorists to drive with extreme care.

Northern Ireland Electricity also said it had around 4,000 customers without power.

Network Rail advises that routes will need to be checked at first light and tracks will need to be cleared of any fallen trees and any damage will need repaired before train services can start.

Robin Gisby, managing director of network operations at Network Rail, said: "Passengers have had a tough week of travelling and unfortunately that is likely to continue for at least another day.

"Thousands of railway workers have worked tirelessly over the holiday period to try and repair the significant damage caused by Monday's storm and will be called on again over the next 24 hours.

"As ever, safety comes first, as we ensure routes are safe for passenger services leading to a delayed start-up in some regions."

:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.

Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang

Weather: Ireland And UK Battered By Storms

Dengan url

http://kotasepisunyi.blogspot.com/2013/12/weather-ireland-and-uk-battered-by.html

Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya

Weather: Ireland And UK Battered By Storms

namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link

Weather: Ireland And UK Battered By Storms

sebagai sumbernya