Storm Katherine causes havoc, grounding flights and leaving thousands without power

Storm Katherine brought winds of up to 70 miles per hour, leaving 34,000 people without power and canceling dozens of UK flights.

The UK has been hit by strong winds, with two yellow warnings issued from 8am to 10pm today across Northern Ireland, the west coast of England, Wales and southern Scotland.

A second weather warning will cover north-west Scotland from 9am to 3pm tomorrow, across Eilean Siar, the Highlands and Argyll and Bute.

Sunday should be drier for most people, with sunshine expected and warmer temperatures in the south as heavy downpours and gusty winds continue overnight, according to the Met Office.

Chief Meteorologist Dan Surry said: “Storm Catherine will bring strong gusty winds to western parts of the UK until Saturday. Gusts are expected to reach 50 to 60mph, with some exposed locations, particularly along the coast of Northern Ireland , wind gusts will reach 60 to 70 mph, and large waves are expected.”

High winds have also caused travel disruption, with around 70 flights departing and arriving from UK airports canceled before midday on Saturday as the Met Office issued a yellow warning for high winds.

Some flights to and from Dublin and Belfast City Airport have also been cancelled.

At London Heathrow, the UK’s busiest airport, British Airways canceled 26 European and domestic flights due to restrictions on arrivals, including flights to and from Amsterdam, Athens, Barcelona, ​​Edinburgh, Nice and Rome.

A British Airways spokesman said: “Like all airlines, we have made some minor adjustments to our flight schedule due to traffic restrictions imposed by Heathrow air traffic control.

“We have apologized to our customers for disrupting their travel plans and our teams are working hard to get them to their destinations as quickly as possible.”

Many flights at Irish airports have been grounded, including Aer Lingus flights to London and other cities from Cork, Dublin, Knock and Shannon.

At least a dozen flights have been canceled at Isle of Man Airport, including flights to and from London, Liverpool, Manchester and Dublin.

Meteorologist Suri added: “There will also be some blustery showers in the west, while drier and brighter conditions will hit the east of the UK.

“With winds blowing in from the south, some unseasonably warm air will be blown across parts of the UK.

“Coupled with sunny spells in East Anglia, temperatures could reach 21°C or 22°C at one point on Saturday. These temperatures are well above average for that time of year and are the first seen in the UK since October last year. the highest temperature.”

Power outages reported on Saturday were mainly in Mayo, Galway, Kerry and Cork.

About 34,000 customers are without power as Storm Catherine continues to sweep across the island of Ireland.

An ESB Networks spokesperson said: “Crews have been mobilized to the affected areas and are responding to the outage where it is safe to do so.

“ESB Networks are continuing to monitor the situation as Storm Catherine is tracked across the country and weather warnings remain in place.

“High winds are expected in the afternoon and further power outages are expected in affected areas.”

Edinburgh’s European Challenge Cup tie against Bayonne on Saturday night has been moved to Murrayfield due to the impact of Storm Catherine.

The last 16 tie was due to be played at the Beehive Stadium next door to Murrayfield, but the venue has been changed due to strong winds that Edinburgh will experience on Saturday.

Edinburgh said their operations team and Scottish Rugby health and safety officials had contacted the Met Office to discuss the implications of the yellow warning for high winds. The match’s 8pm kick-off time remains unchanged.