Chaos of Storm Claudio: Torrential rain and 70mph gales batter UK
Chaos of Storm Claudio: Torrential rain and 70mph gales batter UK as trees are toppled and hundreds of homes in the south are left without power overnight – with Met Office warning of MORE to come
- Storm Claudio saw gusts in excess of 70mph overnight, flattening trees and leaving homes without power
- Homeowners in Nottinghamshire battled floodwater while hundreds of homes in the south suffered outages
- The Met Office has warned more gales to come, with showers also forecast for much of the UK on Tuesday
- A yellow weather warning for wind is also in place for western parts of the UK on Wednesday, Met Office said
Britons are being urged to take extra caution after Storm Claudio brought winds in excess of 70mph overnight, toppling trees and battering buildings in its path and leaving hundreds of homes in the south without power.
The Met Office has warned more gales are to come after it had issued a yellow weather warning for wind for the south from midnight until 8am on Tuesday.
As well as strong winds in the early hours of the morning, people across much of England and Wales can expect more wintery showers on the way today.
Storm Claudio’s move eastwards on Tuesday is expected to leave in its wake a wet, windy day for much of the UK, with Wales and areas in southern and central England predicted to see the most frequent rainfall, the Met Office added.
Overnight, Storm Claudio brought gusts in excess of 70mph overnight, toppling trees such as this one in Old Christchurch Road in Bournemouth town centre, Dorset
Commuters battled winds as they headed to work in Westminster, central London, this morning. The Met Office has warned more gales are to come today after it had issued a yellow weather warning for wind for the south until 8am on Tuesday.
Overnight, hundreds of homes were left without power in the coastal town of Eastbourne, East Sussex, as gusts brought trees and branches crashing down on power lines, causing outages.
Power repair teams were up overnight to try and restore the supply to 570 homes in the area, with similar scenes along the coast in Bournemouth, Dorset, which saw a tree come crashing down in the town centre.
In Hucknall, Nottinghamshire, horrified homeowners had to battle to stop flood water from entering their properties after torrential rain hit parts of the county overnight.
And more than 800 homes across Cornwall where left without power overnight due to the stormy weather conditions, leaving dozens without electricity for more than 12 hours.
The Royal National Lifeboat Association is urging Britons to take extra care by the coast today with strong winds likely to whip up large waves and create choppy conditions.
The RNLI has urged Britons to take extra caution by the coast today after Storm Claudio brought winds and torrential rain overnight. Pictured: The RNLI in Christchurch, Dorset, this morning.
The Met Office has forecast ‘persistent rain across north-east Scotland’ with ‘bands of heavy showers’ to follow in the south, where they say there is a chance of hail and thunder on Tuesday
Neil Armstrong, chief meteorologist at the Met Office, said: ‘The biggest impacts from Storm Claudio are expected in northern France, which is why is has been named as a system by Meteo-France.
‘What it means for us in the UK is for some high winds to be possible along much of the southern coast of England.
‘Some isolated and especially exposed coastal areas could see gusts in excess of 70mph, while much of the warning area will see gusts of between 50 and 60mph.’
Conditions are unlikely to improve by midweek as low pressure moving in from the west is forecast to bring wet and windy weather.
The Met Office said winds are likely to be strongest along Irish Sea coastal areas, including western Wales, north west England and south west Scotland, as well as the east coast of Northern Ireland.
A yellow weather warning was issued by the Met Office from midnight to 8am on Tuesday, with strong gusts in excess of 70mph sweeping through coastal communities
It has issued a yellow weather warning for wind on Wednesday.
The Met Office’s deputy chief meteorologist, Steven Keates, said: ‘Within the warning area, gusts are expected of between 55 and 65mph.
‘This is associated with low pressure moving towards the north west of the UK, which is bringing with it some heavy rain on Wednesday, especially across parts of south west Scotland, Cumbria and western Wales, although much of the UK will see some rain through the day.
‘In addition to high winds in the warning area, many parts of the UK will experience strong and gusty winds, at least for a time, during Wednesday.’
The windy weather comes after the UK enjoyed above-average temperatures as October came to an end, with the mercury reaching the low 20s in some parts resulting in balmy conditions for this time of year.
Source: Read Full Article