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Storm Jocelyn live: Commuters face rush hour chaos amid warnings
Forecasters have warned the worst weather damage may still be coming as strong winds and heavy rain from Storm Jocelyn continue to batter the UK, causing major travel disruption for commuters less than two days after Storm Isha left two people dead and thousands without power.
The 10th named storm of the season brought an amber warning for wind to parts of Scotland on Wednesday morning with much of the UK covered by a yellow alert into Wednesday afternoon.
The Met Office said wind gusts reached 97mph in Capel Curig in Snowdonia, 79mph in Aberdaron, Wales, and 77mph at Shap, Cumbria.
A search for a person reported to be in the sea at Porthcawl, south Wales, was suspended early on Wednesday.
Martin Thomson, national operations manager for resilience at Transport Scotland, said: “Across the wider network, we can expect to see more delays and cancellations with ferries, flights and rail into Wednesday morning.” Train services in Scotland were suspended from 7pm and drivers were warned to postpone their journeys.
Eight flights were cancelled at Dublin Airport and four at Glasgow Airport on Tuesday evening.
Thousands of people are suffering power outages, while flooding is affecting parts of York.
Elsewhere, a search at Porthcawl, south Wales, was suspended after a person was reported to be in the sea just before 6pm on Tuesday. It may resume today.
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Amber, yellow warnings for regions
An amber warning for wind, issued by the Met Office, was in place across the north and west of Scotland until 8am on Wednesday with a yellow warning in place until 1pm across Scotland, Northern Ireland, north Wales and northwest England.
A further yellow warning runs until 3pm across northeast England, the Midlands and south Wales.
Parts of York have been affected by flooding with river flooding probable in parts of the north of England on Wednesday, the Environment Agency said.
River flooding is also possible along parts of the upper River Severn in Shropshire until Friday.
The number of flood warnings – meaning flooding was expected – had reached 21 in England and 37 in Scotland.
The Met Office said winds as high as 76mph were recorded in Aberdaron, Wales, on Tuesday evening and Honister Pass in Cumbria saw 77mm of rain – the equivalent to about half of the average amount the area has in January.
Forecasters expect winds to gradually ease from the south as Storm Jocelyn moves away from the UK on Wednesday, which will be a day of sunny spells and blustery showers, although mainly dry in the south.
Cloud and outbreaks of rain will move north east on Thursday with brighter conditions on Friday and Saturday and frequent showers in the north.
Search for Wales missing person suspended until first light
A search for a person reported to be in the sea at Porthcawl, south Wales, was suspended early on Wednesday.
HM Coastguard said rescue teams from Porthcawl, Port Talbot, Llantwit Major and Llansteffan, together with an HM Coastguard helicopter from St Athan, were joined in the search by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution’s all-weather lifeboats from Mumbles and Barry Dock after the report just before 6pm on Tuesday.
They said a decision on further action would be made after first light.
More travel disruptions this morning
Commuters should expect further transport disruption on Wednesday morning as crews work to remove fallen debris.
Martin Thomson, national operations manager for resilience at Transport Scotland, said: “Across the wider network, we can expect to see more delays and cancellations with ferries, flights and rail from Tuesday into Wednesday morning.”
Liam Sumpter, route director for Network Rail Scotland, said Storm Isha caused “a huge amount of damage” and teams have been working “around the clock” to remove fallen trees and debris, and repair damaged infrastructure.
Suspended ScotRail trains will not restart before later on Wednesday morning.
The train company said each route would need a safety inspection before trains are able to run due to the risk of trees and other debris falling onto the track.
TransPennine Express, which runs services between northern England and Scotland, is advising customers not to travel until noon on Wednesday on its Preston to Glasgow and Preston to Edinburgh routes.
Avanti West Coast’s last London to Glasgow service departed at 3.30pm on Tuesday. The train company said its services to and from Scotland would be cancelled until at least midday on Wednesday.
Severe winds in the north, says Met
Winds as high as 76mph were recorded in Aberdaron, Wales, on Tuesday evening and Honister Pass in Cumbria saw 77mm of rain - the equivalent to about half of the average amount the area has in January.
The M48 Severn Bridge and A66 in County Durham and Cumbria were closed due to high winds with the Humber Bridge, A19 Tees Flyover and the Woodhead Pass in Derbyshire and South Yorkshire closed to high-sided vehicles.
In Scotland, the A76 was closed in both directions between Skelmorlie and Largs due to water breaking over the sea wall.
Storm Jocelyn could cause more disruption than Storm Isha
Met Office chief meteorologist Steve Willington said Storm Jocelyn could cause more disruption than Storm Isha.
“Although this system will be a step down relative to Storm Isha, with the damage and clean-up still under way, we could potentially see more impacts from Storm Jocelyn,” he said.
“Wind gusts are expected to reach 55-65mph across north-western Scotland while there is potential for winds to reach 75-80mph in a few places, in particular exposed parts of the Western Isles and coastal north-west Scotland early on Wednesday morning.”
Wind warnings as 80mph gusts forecast
The strongest winds of up to 80mph are expected between 3am and 7am on Wednesday, before the storm eases off throughout the day.
The Met Office has issued amber and yellow weather warnings for wind covering much of the UK, together with yellow warnings for rain covering parts of western and southern Scotland, and north-west England.
A yellow warning for ice has also been issued across northern and eastern parts of Scotland.
Gusts of 80mph could be experienced in exposed areas, with 40-50mm of rain possible over higher ground.