Storm Boelo has swept across the UK, causing travel chaos, leaving homes without power and battering areas with heavy rain and winds of more than 80mph.
It arrived hot on the heals of Storm Austen, which saw powerful winds of 111mph recorded in Cornwall on Friday and left thousands of homes without power.
The Met Office has issued amber “danger to life” warnings for Scotland and northern England, running from 9pm on Saturday to the same time on Sunday. A number of yellow warnings advise people to “stay at home” to shelter from the worst of the severe weather.
The forecaster warned of potential injuries from flying debris as well as a chance of damage to buildings, power cuts and travel disruption.
A second amber warning affected the tip of Northern Ireland and ran from 9pm Saturday until 10am Sunday.
The Met Office on Sunday said winds had peaked overnight with gusts of 60-70mph affecting areas in the warning zone, including Scotland, parts of Northern Ireland and the far north of England, while gusts topped at more than 80mph in exposed coastal spots.
The island of Tiree in the Inner Hebrides experienced 82mph winds at about 4am on Sunday. The storm has also caused disruptions from fallen trees and flooding on the roads in Scotland overnight.
In a series of updates on social media, Traffic Scotland said several A roads remained closed in some areas on Sunday morning, while many ferry services across the country have been cancelled or are facing disruption.
As well as high wind, heavy downpours since 8am on Saturday have already seen rainfall totals of 72mm in White Barrow, Wiltshire, along with 43mm in both Cwm Dyli, just south of the Snowdon range in North Wales, and Inveruglas on the west shore of Loch Lomond, Scotland. The town centre of Largs in Scotland was hit by what a local business described as its worst flooding ever.
Here, we look at how the storm has impacted the UK and Irelands so far.
Flight disruption
A number of flights to and from the UK and Ireland, particularly those across the Irish Sea, have been cancelled.
At Belfast City Airport, flights departing and arriving from the rest of the UK have been cancelled. Some 17 flights at Belfast international were cancelled.
"Storm Boelo continues to cause some disruption to flights today. Please check with your airline for latest flight information as delays can be expected," a spokesperson told the BBC.
In an update on Sunday, Dublin Airport said: “Strong winds continue to impact on flight operations today.
“Mainly due to weather issues in other countries, airlines have so far cancelled 12 inbound and 12 outbound flights from today’s schedule at Dublin Airport. Wind warnings remain in place until late afternoon, meaning further disruption is possible.”
At least six flights to and from Liverpool John Lennon Airport were cancelled on Sunday.
Flooding
Flooding has also hit parts of Scotland’s west coast overnight.
In a widely shared video on social media, flood water is seen running down Largs Main Street past businesses and roads.
The business which shared the video on Facebook claimed that the street flooded “at its highest level ever”.
Police also warned drivers on Arran to avoid the A841 between Lochranza and Pirnmill, which is closed due to a sink hole.
“Please do not attempt to use either route and consider whether your journey is essential in the current conditions if you do need to drive,” Ayrshire police said on social media.
Road closures
Traffic Scotland said several A roads remain closed in some areas on Sunday morning, including:
- The A1 motorway is closed in both directions at Ayton due to power cables on the carriageway;
- The A75 between Collin and Carrutherstown is closed in both directions due to fallen trees;
- The A82 at the Bridge of Orchy is closed in both directions due to fallen trees;
- The A78 Shore Road in Skelmorlie is closed in both directions due to damage to the road surface;
- The A85 at Achnacloich is partially blocked in both directions;
At around 10.20am, Traffic Scotland announced the Dornoch Bridge on the A9 was fully closed in both directions due to strong winds, and drivers were urged to find alternative routes.
At about the same time, the A82 was also closed in both directions between Luss and Tarbet due to fallen trees.
The A83 is closed in both directions at Inveraray due to a fallen tree.
Power cuts
Thousands of homes across the UK are without power.
Energy company SSEN has reported 74 power cuts affecting areas across parts of Scotland on Sunday morning. That number rose to a total of 93 unplanned power cuts by 10am.
Power outages have been reported across Highlands, Argyll, Western Isles, Orkney, parts of Perth and Kinross, and Stirling.
Large parts of the islands of Mull, Skye, Harris and Lewis have also been affected by the power cuts.
In England, the National Grid, and SP Electricity North West’s (covering parts of Cheshire, Lancashire and Greater Manchester) live maps and trackers showed that thousands of homes without power.
Trains
National Rail said the country’s railways have been hit by severe disruption.
The following train operators are impacted with planned service alterations:
- Avanti West Coast - advising to avoid travelling north of Preston today
- CrossCountry
- Great Western Railway
- Greater Anglia
- LNER - advising to not travel between Edinburgh and Aberdeen today
- Northern
- ScotRail
- TransPennine Express - advising to only travel if essential today
- Transport for Wales
Network Rail shared images of a trampoline beneath a train and a shed by the tracks, in a call for those living near rail lines to secure their garden furniture firmly, while a fallen tree blocked a line between Liverpool and Manchester.
Several rail lines in western and northern Scotland have also closed as a result of the strong wind and heavy rain warnings across the country.
Services south and west of Kilwinning in North Ayrshire stopped from 9pm on Saturday while further north the Oban and Mallaig lines closed from about 10pm.
On Sunday, the line between Kyle of Lochalsh and Achnashellach in the Highlands will be closed from the start of service, as well as the railway between Wick and Helmsdale.
At around 10.30am, the train operator said services between Glasgow Central and Kilmarnock may be delayed or revised due to a tree blocking the railway between Stewarton and Dunlop.
ScotRail said speed restrictions are also expected across much of the network from late Saturday night and throughout Sunday, with the potential for restrictions to remain in place on the Far North Line between Inverness and Wick into Monday morning.
Ferries
Many ferry services across Scotland have also been cancelled or are facing disruption.
Of CalMac’s 30 ferry services, 24 have been cancelled, some of them until Monday.
Three other services are facing disruption or last-minute cancellations because of the weather.
Stena Line also cancelled services from Belfast to Liverpool and Cairnryan, while Western Ferries’ services remained suspended and DFDS cancelled crossings between Dover and Calais.
