The Met Office has said that Storm Otto, named by the Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI), is set to bring high winds and rain to parts of the UK.
The storm will move east across the far north of the UK in the early hours of tomorrow morning (Friday, February 17) likely bringing winds in excess of 75m/h, the UK’s national weather service has warned.
Met Office chief meteorlogist Andy Page said: “There’s a chance of travel disruption and high-sided vehicles could be particularly prone to disrupted plans in this set-up.
“There’s associated rain with Storm Otto, with 40-50mm of rain likely to fall over parts of western Scotland.”
Page said that weather warnings have been issued and that they may be updated as Storm Otto develops.
Status Yellow wind warnings issued by the weather forecaster cover all of Scotland and some of the north and northwest of England.
Dangers highlighted by the warnings include:
- Injuries and danger to life from flying debris are possible;
- Some damage to buildings, such as tiles blown from roofs, 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.
While Storm Otto will impact the UK, the Met Office said that Denmark is expected to get more severe weather on Friday afternoon, which resulted in the country naming the system.
Weekend weather
The Met Office predicts a largely unsettled weekend for weather once Storm Otto passes the UK late on Friday.
This will bring a mix of cloud and rain on Saturday (February 18) with a chance of some cool conditions overnight in Scotland, bringing a risk of ice forming.
Sunday (February 19) will see some clearer spells for the early part of the day with the possibility of some showers in northwestern areas.
More persistent rain will appear moving down from the north late on Sunday evening and night.
Temperatures will remain mild during the daytime today and throughout the weekend, with highs of 14°.
The lowest temperatures will be in Scotland, with lows of 1° on Saturday night. However, a return to milder conditions will be seen on Sunday with highs of 11° during the day.
