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What do the warning colours mean?
Red warning
- Dangerous weather is expected and, if you have not done so already, you should take action now to keep yourself and others safe from the impact of the severe weather.
- It is very likely that there will be a risk to life, with substantial disruption to travel, energy supplies and possibly widespread damage to property and infrastructure.
Amber warning
- There is an increased likelihood of impacts from severe weather, which could potentially disrupt your plans.
- This means there is the possibility of travel delays, road and rail closures, power cuts and the potential risk to life and property.
Yellow warning
- Yellow warnings can be issued for a range of weather situations.
- It is important to read the content of yellow warnings to determine which weather situation is being covered by the warning.
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UK weather warnings
Amber warning
Wind
Warning Valid From: 21:00 Tomorrow UTC+1
Warning Valid To: 21:00 Sun 25 UTC
The strongest winds from Storm Boelo are expected from Saturday evening and extend eastwards through Sunday.
What should I expect?
- Flying debris is likely and could lead to injuries or danger to life
- There is a good chance that power cuts may occur, with the potential to affect other services, such as mobile phone coverage
- Some damage to buildings and trees, such as tiles blown from roofs and large branches or trees blown over, is likely
- Longer journey times and cancellations likely, as road, rail, air and ferry services may be affected
- Some roads and bridges likely to close
- Injuries and danger to life are likely from large waves and beach material being thrown onto coastal roads, sea fronts and properties
What should I do?
Driving in these conditions can be dangerous, for yourself and other road users. If you must drive, you can do this more safely by taking the following actions; drive slowly to minimise the impact of wind gusts, be aware of high-sided vehicles/caravans on more exposed roads and be cautious when overtaking, and give cyclists, motorcyclists, lorries, and buses more room than usual.
Being outside in high winds makes you more vulnerable to injury. Stay indoors as much as possible. If you do go out, try not to walk, or shelter, close to buildings and trees. In advance of high winds, check for loose items outside your home and secure them. Items include: bins, garden furniture, trampolines, tents, sheds, and fences.
If you are on the coast, stay safe during stormy weather by being aware of large waves. Even from the shore large breaking waves can sweep you off your feet and out to sea. Take care if walking near cliffs; know your route and keep dogs on a lead. In an emergency, call 999 and ask for the Coastguard.
People cope better with power cuts when they have prepared for them in advance. It's easy to do; consider gathering torches and batteries, a mobile phone power pack and other essential items.
Stay up to date with the weather forecast for your area and follow advice from emergency services and local authorities.
Further detail
Very strong westerly winds associated with Storm Boelo are expected with fairly widespread gusts of 60 to 70 mph and gusts to 80 mph in exposed coastal areas. The strongest winds will initially affect western Scotland and far north of Northern Ireland on Saturday evening and then spread eastwards overnight and through Sunday. High winds will be accompanied by periods of heavy rain and frequent showers. Whilst high winds are expected across a wider area with a yellow warning in force, there is a higher confidence in impacts and disruption taking place within this amber warning area. The winds will gradually ease from the west through Sunday.
Why is the warning amber?
This warning has a high (50-75%) likelihood and a significant impact.
Issued
Regions and local authorities affected:
Central, Tayside & Fife
Grampian
Highlands & Eilean Siar
North East England
North West England
Northern Ireland
Strathclyde
SW Scotland, Lothian Borders
Yellow warning
Wind
Warning Valid From: 22:00 Thu 22 UTC+1
Warning Valid To: 17:00 Today UTC+1
Storm Austen bringing a spell of strong winds with transport disruption likely and possible damaging winds in some areas.
What should I expect?
- Road, rail, air and ferry services may be affected, with longer journey times and cancellations possible
- Some roads and bridges may close
- Power cuts may occur, with the potential to affect other services, such as mobile phone coverage
- Some damage to buildings, such as tiles blown from roofs, could happen
- Injuries and danger to life from flying debris are possible
- Injuries and danger to life could occur from large waves and beach material being thrown onto sea fronts, coastal roads and properties
What should I do?
Prepare to protect your property and people from injury. Check for loose items outside your home and plan how you could secure them. Items include: bins, garden furniture, trampolines, tents, sheds, and fences.
Give yourself the best chance of avoiding delays by checking road conditions if driving, or bus and train timetables, amending your travel plans if necessary.
People cope better with power cuts when they have prepared for them in advance. It's easy to do; consider gathering torches and batteries, a mobile phone power pack and other essential items.
If you are on the coast, stay safe during stormy weather by being aware of large waves. Even from the shore large breaking waves can sweep you off your feet and out to sea. Take care if walking near cliffs; know your route and keep dogs on a lead. In an emergency, call 999 and ask for the Coastguard.
Be prepared for weather warnings to change quickly. When a weather warning is issued, the Met Office recommends staying up to date with the weather forecast in your area.
Further detail
Strong west to northwesterly winds will spread across southern parts of England and Wales during Thursday night and into Friday. Gusts of 50-60 mph are likely and some coastal or exposed areas could see 70 mph or more, this more likely over parts of southwest England. Ahead of this, a spell of southerly winds with gusts of 50-60 mph will move east along the south coast of England during Thursday night. Winds will slowly ease during Friday afternoon.
Strong winds will be also combined with periods of heavy rain making for difficult travel conditions.
Why is the warning yellow?
This warning has a medium (25-50%) likelihood and a significant impact.
Last updated
Reason: Warning start time brought forward slightly to account for slightly earlier onset of strong southerly winds across the Isles of Scilly and western Cornwall
Regions and local authorities affected:
London & South East England
South West England
Wales
West Midlands
Yellow warning
Wind
Warning Valid From: 10:00 Today UTC+1
Warning Valid To: 21:00 Today UTC+1
A spell of strong winds, touching gales at times, associated with Storm Austen may bring some localised impacts
What should I expect?
- Some short-term loss of power and other services is possible
- It’s likely that some coastal routes, sea fronts and coastal communities will be affected by spray and/or large waves
- Delays for high-sided vehicles on exposed routes and bridges likely
- Probably some bus and train services affected, with some journeys taking longer
What should I do?
Give yourself the best chance of avoiding delays by checking road conditions if driving, or bus and train timetables, amending your travel plans if necessary.
People cope better with power cuts when they have prepared for them in advance. It's easy to do; consider gathering torches and batteries, a mobile phone power pack and other essential items.
If you are on the coast, stay safe during stormy weather by being aware of large waves. Even from the shore large breaking waves can sweep you off your feet and out to sea. Take care if walking near cliffs; know your route and keep dogs on a lead. In an emergency, call 999 and ask for the Coastguard.
Be prepared for weather warnings to change quickly: when a weather warning is issued, the Met Office recommends staying up to date with the weather forecast in your area.
Further detail
Whilst the winds across the warning area are not expected to be as strong as those further south and west, a spell of inland gales is possible with gusts around 45 to 55mph during Friday daytime. In combination with locally heavy rain and many trees still in full leaf, there is potential for some power outages and travel disruption.
Why is the warning yellow?
This warning has a high (50-75%) likelihood and a moderate impact.
Issued
Regions and local authorities affected:
East Midlands
East of England
London & South East England
North West England
South West England
Wales
West Midlands
Yorkshire & Humber
Yellow warning
Wind
Warning Valid From: 12:00 Tomorrow UTC+1
Warning Valid To: 21:00 Sun 25 UTC
Storm Boelo will bring a very windy and wet spell this weekend with some disruption likely across parts of northern UK.
What should I expect?
- Injuries and danger to life from flying debris are possible
- Some damage to buildings and trees, such as tiles blown from roofs and large branches or trees blown over, could happen
- Road, rail, air and ferry services may be affected, with longer journey times and cancellations possible
- Some roads and bridges may close
- Power cuts may occur, with the potential to affect other services, such as mobile phone coverage
- Injuries and danger to life could occur from large waves and beach material being thrown onto sea fronts, coastal roads and properties
What should I do?
Prepare to protect your property and people from injury. Check for loose items outside your home and plan how you could secure them. Items include: bins, garden furniture, trampolines, tents, sheds, and fences.
People cope better with power cuts when they have prepared for them in advance. It's easy to do; consider gathering torches and batteries, a mobile phone power pack and other essential items.
Give yourself the best chance of avoiding delays by checking road conditions if driving, or bus and train timetables, amending your travel plans if necessary.
If you are on the coast, stay safe during stormy weather by being aware of large waves. Even from the shore large breaking waves can sweep you off your feet and out to sea. Take care if walking near cliffs; know your route and keep dogs on a lead. In an emergency, call 999 and ask for the Coastguard.
Be prepared for weather warnings to change quickly. When a weather warning is issued, the Met Office recommends staying up to date with the weather forecast in your area.
Further detail
Strong winds will spread across northern parts of the UK during Saturday afternoon, combining with spells of heavy rain. Initially strong southerly winds will affect parts of Scotland before more widespread and even stronger westerly winds develop later on Saturday. Very windy conditions will then persist overnight and through much of Sunday before gradually easing from the southwest later. Gusts of 55-65 mph are likely widely with some coastal and exposed areas potentially seeing gusts of 70-80 mph or more, these strongest gusts most likely across Scotland and the far north of England.
Why is the warning yellow?
This warning has a medium (25-50%) likelihood and a significant impact.
Last updated
Reason: Start time of the warning brought forward and the warning area extended further south.
Regions and local authorities affected:
Central, Tayside & Fife
East Midlands
Grampian
Highlands & Eilean Siar
North East England
North West England
Orkney & Shetland
Strathclyde
SW Scotland, Lothian Borders
Yorkshire & Humber
Yellow warning
Rain
Warning Valid From: 07:00 Today UTC+1
Warning Valid To: 23:59 Today UTC+1
Storm Austen bringing persistent heavy rain, with the chance of some travel disruption and flooding in a few places
What should I expect?
- There is a small chance that homes and businesses could be flooded, causing damage to some buildings
- Where flooding occurs, there is a slight chance of delays or cancellations to train and bus services
- Spray and flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and some road closures
- There is a small chance that some communities will become cut off by flooded roads
- There is a slight chance of power cuts and loss of other services to some homes and businesses
What should I do?
Check if your property could be at risk of flooding. If so, consider preparing a flood plan and an emergency flood kit.
Give yourself the best chance of avoiding delays by checking road conditions if driving, or bus and train timetables, amending your travel plans if necessary.
People cope better with power cuts when they have prepared for them in advance. It's easy to do; consider gathering torches and batteries, a mobile phone power pack and other essential items.
Be prepared for weather warnings to change quickly: when a weather warning is issued, the Met Office recommends staying up to date with the weather forecast in your area.
Further detail
An area of heavy rain will develop across southern Scotland before dawn Friday in association with Storm Austen, extending over northeast Scotland during the morning and early afternoon. Accumulations of 20-40 mm are expected widely within the warning area through this period, with 60-80 mm possible in some locations, bringing flooding and travel disruption in a few places. The rain will turn lighter and clear from the west through the evening and overnight.
Why is the warning yellow?
This warning has a low (10-25%) likelihood and a significant impact.
Last updated
Reason: Area reduced to account for latest rainfall forecasts and start time pushed back to 07:00
Regions and local authorities affected:
Central, Tayside & Fife
Grampian
Strathclyde
SW Scotland, Lothian Borders
Yellow warning
Wind
Warning Valid From: 10:00 Tomorrow UTC+1
Warning Valid To: 12:00 Sun 25 UTC
Storm Boelo bringing a very windy spell this weekend with some disruption possible across parts of Northern Ireland.
What should I expect?
- There is a chance that power cuts may occur, with the potential to affect other services, such as mobile phone coverage
- There is a small chance of injuries and danger to life from flying debris
- Some damage to buildings and trees, such as tiles blown from roofs and large branches or trees blown over, could happen
- There is a small chance of longer journey times or cancellations as road, rail, air and ferry services are affected
- There is a small chance that some roads and bridges could close
- There is a small chance that injuries and danger to life could occur from large waves and beach material being thrown onto sea fronts, coastal roads and properties
What should I do?
Prepare to protect your property and people from injury. Check for loose items outside your home and plan how you could secure them. Items include: bins, garden furniture, trampolines, tents, sheds, and fences.
People cope better with power cuts when they have prepared for them in advance. It's easy to do; consider gathering torches and batteries, a mobile phone power pack and other essential items.
Give yourself the best chance of avoiding delays by checking road conditions if driving, or bus and train timetables, amending your travel plans if necessary.
If you are on the coast, stay safe during stormy weather by being aware of large waves. Even from the shore large breaking waves can sweep you off your feet and out to sea. Take care if walking near cliffs; know your route and keep dogs on a lead. In an emergency, call 999 and ask for the Coastguard.
Be prepared for weather warnings to change quickly. When a weather warning is issued, the Met Office recommends staying up to date with the weather forecast in your area.
Further detail
Strong winds will spread across Northern Ireland during Saturday. Initially strong southerly winds will develop on Saturday morning, before stronger westerly winds follow later in the day. Very windy conditions will persist overnight and into Sunday before gradually easing from the southwest during Sunday morning. Gusts of 50-60 mph are likely widely with some coastal and exposed areas potentially seeing gusts of 65-75 mph. Strong winds will be combined with blustery heavy showers.
Why is the warning yellow?
This warning has a low (10-25%) likelihood and a significant impact.
Last updated
Reason: Changes to start and end the warning earlier.
Regions and local authorities affected:
Northern Ireland
Warnings are in force for:
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