Storm Agnes: Caution urged as first named storm of the season arrives

Storm Agnes will hit the nation on Wednesday and Thursday, and could bring gales of 80 mph in the country's more exposed areas and rural areas. 

Gusts could be strong enough to damage roofs or topple weak walls, and loose branches and furniture could be thrown around, causing a danger to people and property, while heavy rain in Scotland could lead to localised flooding. 

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Power cuts are also widely expected, with forestry and tree care officials bracing themselves for windblow in pockets down the eastern side of the UK. 

Met Office spokesperson Oli Claydon said: “The storm centre itself remains over the Atlantic and will continue approaching and cross the UK through Wednesday afternoon and will move away Wednesday night into Thursday.

“In terms of most impacted areas, we’re looking at the Irish Sea coasts, so south-eastern parts of Northern Ireland, west and north-western coasts of Wales, and the north-western coast of England.”

The Met Office has issued a yellow wind weather warning from midday on Wednesday to 7am on Thursday, stretching across Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.

The weather warning also covers the south-west of England, the West Midlands and most of the north of England.

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Two yellow rain warnings are also in place covering areas of Scotland and the Met Office has said there could be up to 60 mm of rain within the warning areas.

Jon Bird, property claims manager at NFU Mutual, is urging all home and business owners to act now to try and mitigate damage and disruption.

He said: “With the storm season starting and more storms likely to hit between now and the end of winter, this is the perfect time to fortify your property or business against storms and minimise any disruption in the next few months."