Weather Forecast Logo

UK Storm Rachel 14th / 15th January 2015 - Trees Down - Structural Damage - Pictures

15th January 2015

An intense area of low pressure moving over the UK, dubbed Storm Rachel, has caused trees to fall and some structural damage on Wednesday Night (14th January).  Many homes are without power and there is likely to be disruption to travel on Thursday morning.

Gusts as strong as 72mph have been recorded at The Needles in the Isle of Wight, and the storm continues to intensify. There is expected to be a period of calm very early on Thursday morning, before winds pick up once again in the north through Thursday.

Update (01:00 Thursday): Gusts of 96mph have been recorded at Capel Curig and Great Dun Fell, North England.

Update (02:10 Thursday): Gusts of 101mph have been recorded in Northern England.

Two Yellow weather warnings of wind are in force for the UK, one for the South of Britain, which reads...

Gales or severe gales are expected to develop across much of England and Wales for a time tonight. Inland gusts may locally exceed 60 mph close to the squally cold front, whilst gusts of 60 to 70 mph seem likely at coastal sites in the south and west, as well as across hills. Gusts may exceed 75 mph in the more exposed coastal locations.

And one for the North, which reads...

South to southwesterly gales or severe gales are expected to develop across areas adjoining the Irish Sea this evening, with gusts reaching 60 to 70 mph in places, possibly around 80 mph in exposed coastal and hilly sites. The winds will ease by midnight, but then after something of a lull, a further spell of very strong winds, this time from the west, is expected from late Thursday morning onwards into the evening, again with gusts of 70 mph or more in places.

Winds have been accompanied by heavy rain in some areas, and the Environment agency has issued 128 flood alerts and 13 more severe Flood warnings. Flood alerts mean that flooding is possible, and to be prepared. Flood warnings mean that flooding is expected and immediate action is required.

Areas currently (At the time of writing this) affected by flood warnings are...

  • Keswick campsite in the (North West England)
  • Properties on the Teise in Lamberhurst and Goudhurst (South East England)
  • River Medway between Penshurst and the Leigh Barrier (South East England)
  • Yalding (South East England)
  • River Teise and Lesser Teise between Horsmonden and Claygate (South East England)
  • Paddock Wood and Laddingford (South East England)
  • River Medway between Yalding and Maidstone (South East England)
  • Little Venice Country Park and Marina (South East England)
  • River Beult and Lesser Teise at Collier Street, including Marden, Benover, Chainhurst and Haviker Street (South East England)
  • Langbridge and Alverstone on the Eastern Yar (South East England)
  • River Aller (South West England)
  • Lyme Regis Harbour (South West England)
  • West Bay Harbour (South West England)

For information on current flood alerts and warnings, visit the Environment Agency website.

A Youtube video showing Storm Rachel hitting County Cork on Wednesday night shows just how intense the winds are...

People affected by storm Rachel have taken to twitter to post pictures of damage caused by the winds...

We'll be updating this page with more news on the storm, and more pictures as they become available.

For the latest news on the storm, and the predicted floods, visit our Facebook page, click the 'Like' button and then click the 'Follow' button. Updates will then appear in your Facebook news feed.

Weather Forecast