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According to Express, A VIOLENT superstorm capable of causing NATIONWIDE devastation is smashing into Britain.
is satellite image taken at lunchtime today shows the huge storm surging towards Britain [MET OFFICE/CATERS]
The Met Office
has issued a rare RED WARNING for severe weather urging those living
along the west coast of England to TAKE ACTION now.
Hurricane-force
gales of 110mph have ALREADY been recorded off the south coast of
Ireland with onshore winds of more than 90mph rocking southern Britain.
Electricity power cables and trees have been brought down across the country, leaving more than 70,000 households without power.
Experts have warned that trees, roof tiles and other debris swept up in the 100mph gales could kill.
In the north-west schools have stayed shut and people have been warned to keep their children indoors.
More
than 50,000 homes and businesses in Wales have lost power, while 12,400
in the West Midlands and 8,100 in the South West are also without
electricity.
The huge storm will dump up to three inches of water and unleash fierce gales over Britain [METEOCIEL GFS MODEL]
Road
and rail passengers are in for a bleak night as Network Rail closed the
West Coast mainline between Preston and Shap in Cumbria between 7pm and
9pm.
Virgin Trains have suspended all services out of Euston and have urged all their customers to "abandon travel".
The
rail provider wrote on its Twitter page: "All services out of London
Euston are suspended until further notice due to adverse weather.
"We are advising all customers not to attempt to travel. Customers already on services will be taken to the nearest station."
Oxfordshire, Hampshire, Sussex, Kent and Surrey were also among the counties where train disruption was rife.
Huge waves batter the promenade at Aberystwyth as the storm hits Wales with 100mph gales [James Davies]
These are the dramatic moments a FlyBe flight almost hit the runway in the winds [Cavendish]
Those
travelling from London through the Midlands and to the north west of
England had to put up with speed restrictions tonight, with passengers
warned to expect their journeys to take up to 60 minutes longer than
normal.
On the roads, a 15ft deep hole which was discovered on the central reservation of the M2
in north Kent led to the section of the motorway being shut for a
second day between junction five near Sittingbourne and junction six
south of Faversham.
The M48 Severn Bridge was closed in both directions between junction one at the A403 and junction two at the A466 (Chepstow).
The winds also caused the closure of the A249 Sheppey Crossing in Kent.
Sections
of many roads were closed due to flooding, with the depth of water
causing a lane of the M25 in Surrey to close. Fallen trees added to the
problems for motorists.
Among areas and routes
affected by flooded roads and obstructions on the road were Purley in
south London, a number of routes in Worcester city, the A29 in West
Sussex, the A35 at Christchurch in Dorset, the A30 in Somerset, the A41
in Shropshire, and the A49 Wigan Road at Ashton-in-Makerfield in Greater
Manchester.
At
Manchester Airport a passenger plane was forced to come into land as
strong winds meant one of its wings nearly smashed into the runway.
The
Flybe twin-engine craft came into land and was almost forced to smash
into the ground as it was battered by gusts of up to 80mph.
While
Ireland has already been severely affected with more than 260,000 homes
without power in the worst outage in years, according to the
Electricity Supply Board.
Uprooted trees near Fishguard, West Wales [HUW EVANS]
The enormous storm dominates the northern hemisphere when seen from space [EUMETSAT ]
The storm has triggered torrential downpours across the south and south-west with several inches likely over the next 24 hours.
Wales
will continue to be battered by the ferocious winds throughout the
night and they will extend in to North Wales and North West England with
more severe disruption likely.
The Government
has put out a raft of nation-wide alerts for brutal gales, rain and even
snow in the north which is braced for blizzards.
The public have been urged NOT to travel tonight unless it is absolutely necessary.
Storm
Darwin, which has battered the west coast of Ireland, will rip into
Britain before tearing though the country through today and into
tomorrow.
An Army Landrover drives through flood water in the High Street [GETTY]
Visitors brave the wind and rain on Brighton seafront as another set of storms batter Britain [ALAMY]
A Met Office level-2
amber alert for strong wind is in place across the entire south, south
west and western Britain, with the whole of England under a yellow
warning.
Met Office chief forecaster Martin
Young said: “A first peak in the winds is likely over southern and
southwest England around the middle of today but with the main swathe of
evenstronger and potentially damaging winds crossing parts of Wales
then northern England later in the day.
“The
public should be prepared for the the risk of disruption to transport
and possibly also power supplies. In addition, large waves are likely
to affect some coasts.”
Storm Darwin is loaded with a powerful
“sting jet” similar to one that drove the devastating Great Storm of
October 1987.It hits as experts said the flood crisis is likely to drag
on for months with groundwater levels at their highest for 13 years.Surrey Police said around 1,000 homes in the area have been affected today by flooding with 600 people evacuated.
The Thames is predicted to rise to its highest level in more than 60 years in some places.
The Environment Agency has issued 17 flood warnings in the South West, meaning action required.
Massive waves break against the harbour wall at Porthcawl in south Wales today [REUTERS]
The latest forecasting models show an even BIGGER storm could hit the UK next Thursday [METEOCIEL]"If this wind keeps up when the tides start to flood we'll see what happens. It's just one storm after another, no break to it."
David
Cameron warned “things may get worse before they get better” and
revealed he has cancelled a trip to Israel next week to deal with the
crisis.
He cut short his attendance at an
international conference tomorrow to focus on dealing with the flooding
and had been due to speak at the London Conference on the Illegal
Wildlife Trade, alongside the Prince of Wales and Duke of Cambridge.
But a Downing
Street spokeswoman said: "The Prime Minister will briefly dip in to meet
with international leaders attending the event but his attendance will
be cut short."
The new Cabinet committee on flood recovery will meet tomorrow, replacing a scheduled meeting of the full Cabinet.
The Prime Minister said: “Nothing is more important than dealing with these floods.
“There
is absolutely no sign of this threat abating. It will be a long haul
and it will require a stepped-up national effort with the whole country
pulling together.
The riverside town of Marlow, in Buckinghamshire has been swamped by the River Thames [CASCADE]
“One
of the most inspiring things I have seen over the past two days has
been the incredible spirit of volunteers in our communities.
“Amidst all of this as is so often the case, in the toughest of times we are seeing the best of Britain.
"It
will take time but together we will deal with these floods, we will get
our country back on its feet and we will build a more resilient country
for the future.”
Jonathan Powell, of Vantage Weather Services, said: “Gusts of more than 90mph are likely, with yet more torrential downpours.”
Leon
Brown, of The Weather Channel, said Storm Darwin is loaded with a sting
jet, a powerful and vicious rift of fast-flowing air which follows the
main storm system. “This threatens some very high winds indeed for the
north of England,” he said.
An ariel photograph of the Somerset levels shows the land before the flooding and now [SWNS]Gusts of more than 90mph are likely, with yet more torrential downpours
He said: “Groundwater flooding
could last until May even if the rain stops, as the levels are so high.
The aquifers are at their highest levels since 2001.”
The Met Office has confirmed the wettest winter on record in central, southern and south-east England.
People
living near the £110million Jubilee River defences that protect Windsor
and Maidenhead have been warned it is close to being overwhelmed and
they should prepare to evacuate their homes.
The car has a near miss with a tree as it falls in the storm [Demotix]Source: Express
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