Storm Dudley brings travel disruption as Storm Eunice loomson February 17, 2022 at 7:41 am

Travel disruption and power cuts are continuing across parts of the UK, as the country braces itself for a second storm.

Storm Dudley left thousands of people in north-east England, Cumbria, North Yorkshire and Lancashire without power.

In Scotland, all trains were cancelled on Wednesday evening and many lines remain suspended on Thursday morning.

More severe weather is expected on Friday, with an amber warning for wind in place for Wales and much of England.

The Met Office is warning of significant disruption and danger to life from Storm Eunice, with gusts of up to 80mph.

Around the coasts of west Wales and south-west England, gusts of up to 100mph are possible, the Met Office said.

The amber warning is in place from 03:00 until 21:00 GMT on Friday and goes as far north as Manchester.

London North East Railway urged customers with tickets for journeys between York and Leeds and London’s Kings Cross on Friday to move them to Thursday due to expected disruption.

In Scotland ferry routes continue to be affected by cancellations.

The other weather warnings issued by the Met Office are:

Two flood warnings are in place for the Cumbrian coastline and Keswick Campsite, while 42 flood alerts have been issued across northern England.

In Scotland, a flood warning has been issued from Ayr to Troon, with five other flood alerts in place.

The Met Office said the severe weather would probably ease on Thursday before getting worse on Friday.

But Network Rail warned train services in northern and central England could still be disrupted on Thursday, with some services already affected by cancellations and delays due to fallen trees. It advised people to check their journey before travelling.

In parts of north-east England, Cumbria, North Yorkshire and Lancashire, Northern Powergrid said about 14,000 customers had been affected by power cuts caused by strong winds. On Wednesday evening it said it had reconnected more than 10,000 customers.

At one point nearly 1,700 homes in Wigan were without power.

On Wednesday, Storm Dudley brought gusts of up to 81mph in Capel Curig in Snowdonia, with Emley Moore in Yorkshire seeing 74mph winds, while Aonach Mor, near Fort William, recorded a gust of 101mph.

There is the potential for even stronger winds on Friday with Storm Eunice.

The Met Office said extremely strong winds would develop over south-west England in the morning, before spreading north and east during the day.

It said damage to buildings and homes was likely, along with disruption to trains, buses, ferries and flights. There is also a good chance of power cuts, the Met Office said.

Meanwhile, the Environment Agency warned there is a risk of flooding in southern England on Friday.

It said strong winds could bring coastal flooding to parts of west and south-west England and the southern coast of England, as well as the tidal River Severn, through the early hours of Friday and into early afternoon.