The Met Office has said Storm Betty could bring be a risk of injuries and danger to life from large waves and beach material being thrown onto sea fronts, coastal roads and properties.
Downpours and strong winds are expected to batter parts of the UK today as warnings remain in force across parts of the UK.
Many areas saw heavy downpours and gusts of wind yesterday with the arrival of the second named storm in August.
Capel Curig, a village in north Wales, recorded gusts of 66mph overnight, while a warning for strong winds remains in force until around noon today for parts of England and Wales as well as the eastern area of Northern Ireland.
Saturday will start with some wet and windy weather across parts of the north and west 🌨️🌬️
— Met Office (@metoffice) August 18, 2023
Further south and east it will be drier, brighter and not quite as blustery 🌥️ pic.twitter.com/j0EDY5A4nv
What the Met Office says to expect:
- Some damage to buildings, such as tiles blown from roofs, could happen
- Road, rail, air and ferry services may be affected, with longer journey times and cancellations possible
- Some roads and bridges may close
- Power cuts may occur, with the potential to affect other services, such as mobile phone coverage
- Injuries and danger to life could occur from large waves and beach material being thrown onto sea fronts, coastal roads and properties
The Met Office said flooding of some homes and businesses is possible and travel could be affected with spray and flooding on roads.
Motorcyclist struggling with the Cork flooding due to Storm Betty #StormBetty pic.twitter.com/JDbeV9SNs1
— Dublin Times (@DublinTimes_ie) August 19, 2023
The weather service's chief meteorologist Jason Kelly said the storm had been expected to have the most impact in Ireland and many reported a restless night as homes were battered by wind and rain.
He said: “Friday and Saturday will see unseasonably wet and windy conditions for much of the UK. While Storm Betty will have higher impacts in Ireland, exposed Irish Sea coasts of the UK could see gusts in excess of 70mph, with around 50mph more widely.
"Storm Betty is also bringing some large accumulations of rainfall for the time of year, with some spots of Northern Ireland seeing around 80mm of rain, though between 15-25mm is expected more widely.
"Parts of Scotland could see similarly high accumulations, especially over higher ground."
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