A rare ‘danger to life’ red weather alert for Storm Darragh is in place for a large number of people as planes, trains and ferries have been cancelled and roads closed
Millions of people have been warned to stay at home, there are transport disruptions across the country, and thousands of people are without power as Storm Darragh batters the UK.
The Government’s ‘risk to life’ red alert has meant that trains and flights have been cancelled, while roads have been shut. The emergency alert came into effect at 1am on Saturday morning for anyone living in areas affected by the Met Office’s red warning for wind, which covered Wales and south-west England.
According to the Met Office, overnight there were wind gusts of up to 92mph in Capel Curig in North Wales and Aberdaron on the Llyn Peninsula. While winds of 72-78mph were recorded on the coasts of Wales and Northern Ireland.
Thousands of people across Northern Ireland, England and Wales have also been left without power. At 5am this morning, National Grid reported that over 12,600 homes were without power in the Midlands and south-west, while 20,000 properties in Wales had also lost power. There are travel disruptions up and down the country, with trains cancelled, flights delayed, and roads closed.
Rail cancellations
Network Rail shared an update to their website which read: “Storm Darragh and severe weather are expected to bring significant disruption with heavy rain and wind across parts of Great Britain. Please check your journey in full before travelling.”
According to the website, the storm is set to impact LNER services until Sunday morning. There’s also a disruption between Lewes and Eastbourne at present.
Meanwhile all TransPennine Express services are set to be impacted until Sunday morning. Merseyrail services are also being affected by the weather warning, with changes to train timetables.
Network Rail Wales has stopped all train services west of Cardiff due to fallen trees blocking the lines. All South Western Rail, Great Western Rail, CrossCountry, and Northern services are set to be impacted by the storm until tomorrow morning, with changes to timetables and cancellations.
Chiltern Railway services are advising passengers to only travel if absolutely necessary, and have advised that there will be disruptions to their services. There are expected disruptions to train services between Leeds and Wakefield Westgate.
Road closures
There are a number of road closures across the UK. The main motorway that connects south Wales to England has been closed in various places because of the storm.
The M48 Severn Bridge in Gloucestershire is closed in both directions between J1 (Aust) and J2 (Chepstow) due to strong winds associated with Storm Darragh. The M4 Prince of Wales Bridge in Gloucestershire is closed in both directions due to strong winds.
The A66 between North Yorkshire (A1M) and Cumbria (M6) is closed in both directions due to strong winds resulting from Storm Darragh.
National Highways have issued an amber severe weather alert for Strong Winds in the South West and North West regions of the country for today between 1am nd 9pm. Road users in the South West and North West regions of England are advised to check ahead and plan for disruption to their journeys.
The A5 is closed in both directions between B5070 (Gledrid) and A483 (Halton) due to strong winds associated with Storm Darragh. National Highways revealed that the M4 and Severn Bride, M48, were all closed due to strong winds.
National Highways also advised that the QEII Bridge at Dartford Crossing had been closed due to strong winds. In the West Midlands, the A5 was closed between the B5050 at Gledrid and the A483 at Halton, because of the wind.
Flight cancellations
Cardiff Airport has been forced to close their runway due to the bad weather, with a note on their website reading: “Passengers due to fly this weekend are advised to contact their airline or tour operator, as we do anticipate some disruption.”
Gatwick airport is running as normal at present. Heathrow airport warns that the storm ‘can cause delays’ and has advised passengers to check flights before travelling to the airport. There are a couple of cancellations at Heathrow but most journeys are running on time.
Manchester airport is running mainly on time, with the exception of a few delays to arrivals due to the storm. Edinburgh airport is running as usual, with departures and arrivals seemingly on time.
Liverpool John Lennon Airport has some cancellations to arrivals due to flights being delayed from other areas in the UK.
Ferry crossings
Yesterday, DFDS cancelled some of their ferry crossings and said: “the scheduled sailing of King Seaways on 6th December 2024 departing Newcastle to Amsterdam and Princess Seaways on 6th December 2024 departing Amsterdam to Newcastle have been cancelled.”
