UK weather forecast: Storm Claudio brings rain and 70mph gales with Met Office warning MORE to come

Britons are being urged to take extra caution after Storm Claudio brought winds in excess of 70mph overnight, toppling trees and battering buildings in its path and leaving hundreds of homes in the south without power.

The Met Office has warned more gales are to come after it had issued a yellow weather warning for wind for the south from midnight until 8am on Tuesday as November gets off to a blustery start.

As well as strong winds in the early hours of the morning, people across much of England and Wales can expect more wintery showers on the way today.

Storm Claudio’s move eastwards on Tuesday is expected to leave in its wake a wet, windy day for much of the UK, with Wales and areas in southern and central England predicted to see the most frequent rainfall, the Met Office added.

Overnight, Storm Claudio brought gusts in excess of 70mph overnight, toppling trees such as this one in Old Christchurch Road in Bournemouth town centre, Dorset

Commuters battled winds as they headed to work in Westminster, central London, this morning. The Met Office has warned more gales are to come today after it had issued a yellow weather warning for wind for the south until 8am on Tuesday.O

Overnight, a woman in her 20s was killed, and another seriously injured, when their car veered out of control in strong winds and torrential rain, causing it to crash into a bridge parapet.

Paramedics were called to the scene, on the A322 road in Lightwater, Surrey, where she was pronounced dead. 

A passenger in the Fiesta Zetec was trapped in the wreckage and had to be cut free by firefighters before she was rushed to hospital to be treated for serious injuries.

Meanwhile, hundreds of homes were left without power in the coastal town of Eastbourne, East Sussex, as gusts brought trees and branches crashing down on power lines, causing outages.

Power repair teams were up overnight to try and restore the supply to 570 homes in the area, with similar scenes along the coast in Bournemouth, Dorset, which saw a tree come crashing down in the town centre.   

In Hucknall, Nottinghamshire, horrified homeowners had to battle to stop flood water from entering their properties after torrential rain hit parts of the county overnight. 

The RNLI has urged Britons to take extra caution by the coast today after Storm Claudio brought winds and torrential rain overnight. Pictured: The RNLI in Christchurch, Dorset, this morning.

The Met Office has forecast ‘persistent rain across north-east Scotland’ with ‘bands of heavy showers’ to follow in the south, where they say there is a chance of hail and thunder on Tuesday

A fallen tree in Old Christchurch Road, Bournemouth town centre, Dorset, after Storm Claudio saw winds of up to 70mph sweep across the south coast

And more than 800 homes across Cornwall where left without power overnight due to the stormy weather conditions, leaving dozens without electricity for more than 12 hours. 

And on Monday, a couple had to be rescued when their £150,000 yacht moored off Sandbanks capsized in gale force winds.

The man and woman, aged in their 40s, were sleeping onboard the sailing yacht in Poole Harbour when its anchor broke loose during Storm Claudio and started to blow the vessel towards the harbourside.

As it started taking on water the occupants called 999 and an RNLI lifeboat from Swanage was sent to rescue them just before midnight on Monday.

A commuter battles with downpours on her way to work this morning in Westminster, central London, with more showers on the way, according to the Met Office

Trees have toppled overnight including this one blocking a road in Walditch, Dorset, as Storm Claudio brought heavy rain and gusts of up to 70mph last night

More rain is expected today with commuters on their way to work during the wet weather in Trafalgar Square, central London, on Tuesday morning

Dave Turnbull, one of the volunteers at Swanage lifeboat station, which attended the emergency, described the weather conditions as ‘awful’.

The Royal National Lifeboat Association is urging Britons to take extra care by the coast today with strong winds likely to whip up large waves and create choppy conditions.

Gusts of 61mph were recorded at 7am on Tuesday in Langdon Bay in Kent, while 59mph was recorded at Heathrow at 4am. 

A yellow weather warning was issued by the Met Office from midnight to 8am on Tuesday, with strong gusts in excess of 70mph sweeping through coastal communities

The Royal National Lifeboat Association is urging Britons to take extra care by the coast today with strong winds likely to whip up large waves and create choppy conditions. Pictured: Bright Marina this morning

A commuter battles with downpours on their way to work this morning in Trafalgar Sqaure, central London, with more showers on the way, according to the Met Office

In Christchurch, Dorset, heavy winds overnight saw boats being toppled in the harbour, with more windy gusts forecast today

Commuters battled wind and rain on their way to work through the park in Westminster, central London, this morning

Trees have toppled overnight including this one blocking a road in Walditch, Dorset, as Storm Claudio brought heavy rain and gusts of up to 70mph last night

Neil Armstrong, chief meteorologist at the Met Office, said: ‘The biggest impacts from Storm Claudio are expected in northern France, which is why is has been named as a system by Meteo-France.

‘What it means for us in the UK is for some high winds to be possible along much of the southern coast of England.

‘Some isolated and especially exposed coastal areas could see gusts in excess of 70mph, while much of the warning area will see gusts of between 50 and 60mph.’

Conditions are unlikely to improve by midweek as low pressure moving in from the west is forecast to bring wet and windy weather.

The Met Office said winds are likely to be strongest along Irish Sea coastal areas, including western Wales, north west England and south west Scotland, as well as the east coast of Northern Ireland.

The Met Office has issued yellow warnings for wind and rain on Wednesday, with a spell of very windy weather expected to hit Irish Sea coastal areas before spreading to parts of northern England.

Forecasters expect gusts of 55-65mph particularly in exposed coastal areas and over higher ground, with some sudden strong gusts of wind also possible.

The wind warning covers the eastern part of Northern Ireland, parts of Wales and Scotland, North East and North West England, and Yorkshire and Humber from 7am to 8pm.

Further heavy rain is also likely during Wednesday with forecasters warning of potential travel disruption and flooding.

A yellow warning is in place in Northern Ireland from 8am to 3pm with 20mm to 30mm of rain likely to fall in some areas before it clears up in the afternoon.

A separate yellow warning for rain is in place in South West Scotland, Lothian Borders and Strathclyde from 10am to 6pm, with 30mm to 40mm of rain expected.

The Met Office’s deputy chief meteorologist, Steven Keates, said: ‘Within the warning area, gusts are expected of between 55 and 65mph.

‘This is associated with low pressure moving towards the north west of the UK, which is bringing with it some heavy rain on Wednesday, especially across parts of south west Scotland, Cumbria and western Wales, although much of the UK will see some rain through the day.

‘In addition to high winds in the warning area, many parts of the UK will experience strong and gusty winds, at least for a time, during Wednesday.’

The windy weather comes after the UK enjoyed above-average temperatures as October came to an end, with the mercury reaching the low 20s in some parts resulting in balmy conditions for this time of year.