Coast and Sea
Inshore waters and strong winds
General situation
An Atlantic low will bring rain, showers and strong winds to the coastal waters during the next couple of days, with thundery showers for a time on Tuesday.
Issued at: .
For coastal areas up to 12 miles offshore for the period 00:00 (UTC) on Tue 19 May 2026 to 00:00 (UTC) on Wed 20 May 2026
Inshore waters and strong winds map
Cape Wrath to Rattray Head including Orkney (1)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southeast 4 to 6, increasing 6 or 7 for a time.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, occasionally rough in north and east.
- Weather
- Fair then rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southeast 4 to 6, becoming cyclonic 3 to 5, then southwest 4 or 5 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, occasionally rough at first in northeast.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Rattray Head to Berwick upon Tweed (2)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southeast 3 to 5, increasing 5 or 6 for a time, veering south later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, occasionally rough later in northeast.
- Weather
- Fair then rain, thundery showers later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- South veering southwest, 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth later in southwest.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, fair later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Berwick upon Tweed to Whitby (3)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southeast 4 or 5, increasing 6 for a time, veering south later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair then rain, thundery showers later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- South veering southwest, 4 or 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, becoming smooth or slight later.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, fair later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Whitby to Gibraltar Point (4)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- South or southeast 4 to 6, veering southwest 4 or 5 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair then rain, thundery showers later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southwest 4 or 5, occasionally 3 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate becoming smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, fair later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Gibraltar Point to North Foreland (5)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southerly or southeasterly 4 to 6, veering southwesterly later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth in the wash and Thames estuary.
- Weather
- Fair then rain, thundery showers later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southwesterly 4 to 6, decreasing 3 or 4 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate at first in east.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, fair later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
North Foreland to Selsey Bill (6)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southerly 4 or 5, increasing 6, veering southwesterly 5 or 6.
- Sea state
- Slight becoming moderate.
- Weather
- Rain then showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southwesterly 5 or 6, decreasing 4 or 5 later.
- Sea state
- Moderate, occasionally slight later.
- Weather
- Showers at first.
- Visibility
- Good.
Selsey Bill to Lyme Regis (7)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- South veering southwest, 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Moderate, occasionally rough later in southwest.
- Weather
- Rain then showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southwest 4 to 6, decreasing 3 or 4 later.
- Sea state
- Moderate, occasionally rough at first and slight later.
- Weather
- Showers at first.
- Visibility
- Good.
Lyme Regis to Lands End including the Isles of Scilly (8)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- South veering southwest, 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Rain then showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southwest 4 to 6, backing south 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, occasionally slight in lyme bay and very rough at first near the Isles of Scilly.
- Weather
- Showers, fair later.
- Visibility
- Good.
Lands End to St Davids Head including the Bristol Channel (9)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- South veering southwest, 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, but slight in east.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southwest 4 to 6, backing south 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, but slight in east.
- Weather
- Showers, rain later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor later.
St Davids Head to Great Orme Head, including St Georges Channel (10)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southeast 4 to 6, veering southwest 5 or 6.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, becoming moderate or rough except in northeast.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers, fog patches at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southwest 4 to 6, backing south later.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, occasionally slight in northeast.
- Weather
- Showers, rain later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor later.
Great Orme Head to the Mull of Galloway (11)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southeast 4 to 6, occasionally 7 at first, veering southwest later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth in Liverpool Bay.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southwest 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Showers, rain later in south.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor later in south.
Isle of Man (12)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southeast 5 or 6, veering west or southwest 4 or 5 later.
- Sea state
- Moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- West or southwest, backing south or southwest later, 4 or 5.
- Sea state
- Moderate, becoming slight or moderate later.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Lough Foyle to Carlingford Lough (13)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southeast 5 or 6, veering south 4 to 6, then southwest 4 or 5 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers, fog patches at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southwest 4 or 5 backing south 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Mull of Galloway to Mull of Kintyre including the Firth of Clyde and North Channel (14)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southeasterly 4 to 6, veering southwesterly 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers, fog patches at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southwesterly 3 to 5, backing southerly 2 to 4, occasionally 5 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate in North Channel.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Mull of Kintyre to Ardnamurchan Point (15)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southeast 5 to 7, veering south 3 or 4.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, occasionally rough in northwest.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, perhaps thundery in south.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- South 3 or 4, veering southwest 4 to 6 for a time.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, becoming rough in northwest.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
The Minch (16)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southeasterly 4 to 6, occasionally 7 at first in south, veering southerly 3 or 4 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, becoming smooth or slight except in south.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southerly 3 or 4, veering southwesterly 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Moderate in south, otherwise smooth or slight becoming slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Ardnamurchan Point to Cape Wrath (17)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southeasterly 4 to 6, occasionally 7 at first in south, veering southerly 3 or 4 later.
- Sea state
- Moderate, occasionally rough at first in southwest, becoming slight later in northeast.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southerly 3 or 4, veering southwesterly 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, becoming moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Shetland Isles (18)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Southeast 4 to 6, increasing 6 or 7.
- Sea state
- Moderate, becoming rough except in northwest.
- Weather
- Mainly fair then rain.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
For Coastal areas up to 60 nautical miles from Lerwick, Shetland (18)
Strong wind warning
Valid Tuesday 19 May 2026 at 0000 UTC until Tuesday 19 May 2026 at 1200 UTC
General situation
Southeasterly flow will strengthen on Tuesday. Atlantic front will move northeast towards Shetland on Tuesday afternoon and evening.
Forecast
- Wind
- Southeasterly 5 to 7, but 4 at first in east
- Sea state
- Moderate, becoming rough in west and south. slight just east of shetland at first.
- Weather
- Fair
- Visibility
- Good
Outlook for 12 Hours from 1200 UTC on Tuesday 19 May until 0000 UTC on Wednesday 20 May
- Wind
- Southeast 6 or 7
- Sea state
- Mainly rough, but moderate in east and north at first
- Weather
- Rain
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate or poor
Channel Islands (19)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- South 5 to 6 with gusts locally to 35kt, veering southwest 4 to 5 mid morning, perhaps locally 6.
- Sea state
- Slight to moderate overnight with a low swell, increasing rather rough to rough in the northwest later.
- Weather
- Rain spreading eastwards, locally heavy, clearing to isolated showers around dawn, perhaps locally heavy later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate, locally poor at times.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Southwest 4 to 5, occasionally 6, veering west by midday Wednesday, locally variable 1 to 3 in the south of the area, backing south 2 to 3 later.
- Sea state
- Slight to moderate with a low swell in the southeast, rather rough to rough till midday in the north and west.
- Weather
- Isolated showers, dying out around dawn.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate, perhaps locally poor.
Inshore waters forecast information
Forecasts for UK inshore waters are issued four times a day and cover a period of 24 hours from 0000, 0600, 1200 and 1800 UTC.
The coastal waters around the British Isles are divided into 19 areas which extend up to 12 nautical miles offshore.
The forecast contains details of wind direction and force, sea state, weather and visibility.
Strong coastal winds (force 6 or more) are displayed for the first 24 hours of the inshore waters forecast.
Marine forecasts disclaimer
In the UK, the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) is responsible for the provision of Maritime Safety Information (MSI) to ships at sea, which includes the broadcast of warnings and forecasts. The Met Office initiates warnings and prepares routine forecasts for dissemination on behalf of the MCA.
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