Storm Boelo to bring strong winds and heavy rain as power cuts persist

Storm Boelo is forecast to bring strong winds and heavy rain to parts of the UK from Saturday evening, as thousands of homes remain without power after Storm Austen.

An amber wind warning is in force from 21:00 BST on Saturday until the same time on Sunday across much of Scotland, the far north of England and the north of Northern Ireland. Gusts of 60-70mph are expected, with exposed coastal areas potentially reaching 80mph. The Northern Isles are excluded from the amber warning.

The BBC reports that travel disruption, further power cuts and localised flooding are possible. ScotRail has confirmed some services will be cancelled after 21:00 on Saturday. Yellow wind warnings cover Orkney and other parts of Northern Ireland and northern England, where gusts of 55-75mph are possible.

Heavy, persistent rain is forecast across a wider area, with spray and surface water likely to make driving hazardous and further downpours raising the risk of localised flooding. Strong winds are expected to continue into Sunday, while rain should ease across most of the country. North-east Scotland is likely to see the most persistent rainfall.

The new storm follows Austen, which brought strong winds to southern England and Wales on Friday, causing fallen trees, transport disruption and power cuts. The National Grid said engineers had restored electricity to more than 60,000 properties, but more than 10,000 homes were still without power on Friday evening. Part of Brighton’s West Pier also collapsed into the sea.

The latest storm is another stage in a weekend of disruption as Boelo approaches. The BBC says unsettled weather could continue early next week, with another area of low pressure potentially bringing further rain and strong winds on Monday and Tuesday. It is not yet clear whether that system will be strong enough to be named.