Fears for life with Storm Bram bringing 90mph winds and ‘half a month’s rain’ in 24 hours

A ‘danger to life’ warning has been issued for heavy rain and 90mph winds as Storm Bram rips through the UK.

The gails could rip off roofs and bring down power lines across parts of the UK from Monday night into Wednesday morning, the Met Office has warned.

Gusts of 90mph are expected in places, sparking huge waves and beach material being thrown onto sea fronts, coastal roads and homes, with flying debris posing a possible ‘danger to life’.

Western areas including the whole of Wales will bear the brunt of the wind and rain, but parts of northern England will also be in for a drenching.

Some areas could see more than half a month’s rainfall in a single day this week, the Met Office also warned.

Yellow weather warnings will be in place until Wednesday, with heavy rain and fierce winds forecast to lash the nation, while an amber warning is in place for northwestern Scotland tomorrow.

The miserable weather could lead to travel chaos, power outages and flooding.

Storm Bram is the second storm to be jointly named by the UK Met Office and Irish Met Éireann, since Storm Amy in October.

Although we have also seen Storm Benjamin and Storm Claudia since then,these were named in other regions before making their way to our shores.

Here is what you need to know.

When do the yellow and amber weather warnings start?

The first weather warning covered Northern Ireland yesterday, and the wet weather is now moving east.

Swathes of south-western England and Wales are under a yellow weather warning for rain today.

Up to 100mm of rain could fall over Dartmoor and South Wales, which would amount to more than half the average monthly rainfall in December.

The amber warning for wind covers northwestern Scotland 4pm until 11.59pm on Tuesday.

‘Storm Bram will bring a spell of very strong and disruptive winds to northwest Scotland on Tuesday night,’ the Met Office said.

Winds reaching speeds of 70mph will batter England’s southwest and the Welsh coast too. Northwest Wales may see winds even stronger than that, the Met Office warning says.

And the bad weather won’t end there – Monday’s wind and rain warnings will remain in place until 4pm on Tuesday.

From midnight until 3pm, another yellow alert for rain will be in place across a patch of north east England.

The warning says: ‘Rain will also be accompanied by strengthening south to southwesterly winds, with gusts in excess of 60mph possible over high ground, which may exacerbate impacts, especially on routes across the Pennines.’

Yellow weather warnings are covering other parts of the UK on Tuesday.

Two other yellow weather warnings for wind have been issued for Scotland, the North East and North West England, and parts of Wales on Wednesday.

The warning starts from 12am on Tuesday and ends at noon for the Grampians, Highlands and Eilean Siar, the Orkney Islands, and Strathclyde regions of Scotland.

The second yellow weather warning comes into force at 12am on Tuesday and ends at 6am for parts of the Grapians, North West and North East England, and the Denbighshire and Flintshire parts of Wales.

Who named Storm Bram?

Storm Bram was named by Met Eireann, the Irish equivalent of the Met Office, who work jointly with the Dutch and UK Met Offices to categorise and name storms.

Official names used in the UK are updated annually at the start of the autumn and winter storm season, generally running from early September until late August the following year.

The UK has used this system since 2015 to make communicating dangers from extreme weather simpler.

If a storm arrives here that has already been named by another country, such as a weakened hurricane, it will keep its original name to avoid confusion.

Where are the weather warnings in the UK?

The Met Office’s Steven Keates further elaborated on the situation, saying, ‘A deepening area of low pressure will approach the UK from the southwest later on Monday, bringing with it heavy rain and strong winds, which are likely to affect the UK between late Monday and early Wednesday.

‘The exact track, depth, and timings of this low are uncertain, which makes it harder to determine where will be most impacted by strong winds and/or heavy rain.

The rest of the month’s weather remains unsettled, with further periods of low pressure predicted.

What is a weather warning?

The mildest of the warnings, a yellow weather warning, alerts the public to upcoming meteorological events which may cause disruption to travel.

A representative from the Met Office states: ‘Many people may be able to continue with their daily routine, but there will be some who will be directly impacted, and so it is important to assess if you could be affected.

‘Other yellow warnings are issued when the weather could bring much more severe impacts to the majority of people, but the certainty of those impacts occurring is much lower.’

Still, a yellow warning is well worth being aware of, as it may indicate a threat of floods or possible damage to homes and businesses.

An amber warning indicates the likelihood of more severe impacts.

UK is still recovering from flooding during Storm Claudia

Parts of the country are still recovering from severe weather, with Monmouth in South Wales seeing unprecedented flooding during Storm Claudia in November.

Firefighters declared a major incident, with South Wales Fire and Rescue and Welsh Ambulance Services carrying out rescues, evacuations and welfare checks on residents.

Less than a week later, snow swept the UK as far south as London, with the North and parts of the South West getting much more than a dusting.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

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