Storm Darragh latest: ‘Risk to life’ alerts sound as trains cancelled, flights delayed and Christmas events postponed
Key points
- ‘Nasty’ Storm Darragh hits UK – as 90mph winds expectedGovernment sends ‘risk to life’ alert to millions of phonesRed, amber and yellow weather warnings issuedFlights delayed as airlines warn of further disruption Train cancellations and delays across BritainChristmas events postponedWelsh FA postpones all football matches tomorrowLive reporting by Brad Young
20:20:33 Have you been affected by the storm?
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00:08:18 Welsh newspaper leads on red ‘danger to life’ warning
The Western Mail has led on the red “danger to life” wind warning covering much of Wales for its Saturday edition.
The paper highlights the cancelling of all rugby and football matches and the possibility of heavy rain and strong gusts of wind up to 90mph.
The warning covers the west coast of Wales and parts of the South West as well.
It comes as parts of South Wales suffered badly under recent storms, seeing severe flooding in places.
Many are now braced for what Storm Darragh may bring later today.
22:38:56 ‘Worst storm I’ve seen – and it’s only the start’, says coastal resident
A resident of Port Talbot, Wales, says Storm Darragh is already the worst storm he has seen there.
Craig told Sky News the wind was “already roaring” outside his Aberavon Beach apartment.
“There’s so much sand in the air, it’s very dangerous. Car alarms up and down the beach are constantly going off. Impossible to go outside.”
Nobody is venturing outside despite the red weather warning not coming into force until 3am, he said.
“This is by far the worst storm I’ve seen in all my years living in Port Talbot and this is apparently only the start.”
22:19:38 Reports of weather turning from calm to crazy in minutes
Ireland correspondent Stephen Murphy is in Galway, on Ireland’s west coast, where Storm Darragh is making landfall.
“It is a pretty nasty, filthy, dirty night here,” he says.
But residents about town feel the storm is yet to really hit, despite being under a red warning for the past hour, he explains.
The mayor of the city has urged Friday night revellers to give a second thought to going out this evening – but many aren’t paying attention, Murphy adds.
“Things can change very quickly, and we’re hearing reports from County Mayo, just north of here, that things went from calm to very crazy just about half an hour ago.”
21:57:50 Tomorrow’s weather forecast
By Jo Robinson, weather producer
Storm Darragh, the fourth named storm of the season, will bring damage and disruption tonight and tomorrow.
Strong winds are the main concern with this dangerous storm, especially across western parts of the country, where gusts will reach 60-70mph, higher on coasts and hills.
Some exposed regions of Wales, southwest England and parts of Ireland will see damaging gusts in excess of 90mph.
Heavy rain is likely too, especially for northern and western parts, where 20-30mm is likely. Up to 90mm is possible in South Wales.
Localised flooding is a concern after recent wet weather but rainfall amounts will be less than Storm Bert.
Heavy snow is possible on northern hills, mainly on ground above 300m in Scotland.
Sunday still looks windy, especially in the south and east, but it won’t be stormy like Saturday.
Next week will be calmer and drier overall (still quite windy in the south on Monday and Tuesday) with the return of overnight frost and fog.
21:22:18 Irish leader urges people to take red warnings ‘extraordinarily seriously’
People in Ireland have been urged to take red warnings “extraordinarily seriously” by Taoiseach Simon Harris.
The warnings, which have been issued for wind, are Met Eireann’s highest level of alert.
“A red weather warning does mean do not travel during that period of time, and even though it is a Friday night and coming up to the Christmas season, I’d really encourage people to heed that advice and indeed to follow closely weather advice in the hours ahead,” Mr Harris said.
“Of course, there’s an orange weather warning for the rest of the country as well.
“So, really, people in that area should avoid any unnecessary travel at all. It is important people take these warnings very, very seriously in terms of protecting life in the hours ahead.”
20:41:09 Storm causes train cancellations and delays across Britain
National Rail has warned Storm Darragh will likely impact train services across southwest Scotland, the north and southwest of England, Cornwall and Wales.
CrossCountry, Great Western Railway, West Midlands Railway, London Northwestern Railway, Transport for Wales, Northern, ScotRail and South Western Railway will be affected tomorrow.
CrossCountry has issued a “do not travel” warning, with services cancelled between:
- Edinburgh – Glasgow Central / AberdeenNewcastle – Reading (direct services only)Cambridge and Stansted AirportGloucester and Cardiff Central.
South Western Railway will make the following changes to its services:
- London Waterloo – Salisbury / Exeter St Davids will only run between Basingstoke and Salisbury / Exeter St Davids;London Waterloo – Weymouth will only operate between London Waterloo and Bournemouth until 11am tomorrow;An extremely limited service will run between Bournemouth and Weymouth until 1pm tomorrow.
Great Western Railway will run services with speed restrictions across the network, increasing journey times.
London Northwestern Railway warned the following routes could be affected by the storm:
- London – CreweLondon – BirminghamBirmingham – LiverpoolCrewe – Stafford via Stoke on Trent.
West Midlands Railway anticipates impacts to all routes in the West Midlands.
Transport for Wales services said some services will be cancelled in southwest Wales, north Wales, the heart of Wales and Cambrian lines.
Cancellations include:
- Llandudno / Llandudno Junction – Blaenau FfestiniogLlandrindod – ShrewsburyCarmarthen – Pembroke Dock / Milford Haven / Fishguard Harbour.
ScotRail said there will be a speed restriction between Stranraer and Ayr / Kilmarnock / Glasgow Central.
20:07:01 Starmer issues message over storm
The prime minister says the government is working with local leaders and agencies to keep residents safe.
Posting on X, Sir Keir Starmer wrote: “A red warning is in place for parts of the country due to Storm Darragh.
“The UK Emergency Alert System has issued advice through mobile phones in the areas affected.
“We are working with local leaders and agencies on the ground to keep you safe.”
19:47:01 Welsh Rugby Union postpones all community fixtures
The Welsh Rugby Union has postponed all community rugby fixtures across all ages scheduled for tomorrow.
The postponement also applies to Super Rygbi Cymru Round 10 fixtures, which will now be rescheduled.
The decision was made “in the interests of safety for our clubs, officials, players and spectators”, the union said.
National Cup fixtures scheduled for this weekend will be rearranged for 14 December.
19:27:59 Christmas events cancelled across country
Festive events have been cancelled across the country.
Winter Wonderland and Christmas at Kew Gardens are the latest to shut tomorrow as a result of Storm Darragh.
Windsor Great Park’s light show has been cancelled, with all Royal Parks closing tomorrow.
Elsewhere, Bournemouth Christmas Market said it was “absolutely gutted” to have to close over the weekend.
Exeter’s Winter Wonderland will close all attractions apart from its ice rink and Santa’s Grotto.
Banbury Lantern Parade has been postponed to 14 December after a “tough decision”.
Plymouth’s Christmas market will not be operating tomorrow for safety reasons.
Brighton’s Winter Fayre has been forced to close over the weekend.