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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Ryan Merrifield

Storm Franklin confirmed as Met Office in 'danger to life' warning for gales today

Storm Franklin has been confirmed by the Met Office with an amber weather warning issued for strong winds and heavy rain.

It's the first time three storms have been recorded in such quick succession since the naming system began - following Dudley and Eunice last week.

The latest cyclone is due in the UK today, with the national forecaster putting a warning in place across Northern Ireland.

According to weather charts, wind gusts could reach as high as 65mph in the early hours of tomorrow.

The warning is in place from midnight tonight until 7am on Monday.

It says flying debris, as well as large waves on the coast caused by the winds and "could lead to injuries or danger to life".

"Probably some damage to buildings, such as tiles blown from roofs, along with trees/branches being brought down," it adds.

Power cuts are also a possibility, as are road closures and suspension to travel services.

Storm Franklin has been confirmed by the Met Office (Liverpool Echo)

Milder yellow warnings for wind also cover Wales and most of England from midday until 3pm, and the North West and Northern Ireland from midday until midnight.

Identical wind warnings have been issued for Monday.

Environment agencies have also issued hundreds of alerts for flooding across the UK.

It comes as Britain continues to dust itself off after Storm Eunice caused devastation, with at least four deaths.

Storm Franklin is set to strike in Northern Ireland tonight (Met Office)

Homes, transport links and power lines were affected by Eunice, which brought record 122mph gusts - with thousands of people still without power.

An estimated 1.4 million homes saw their power cut amid the storm.

The Met Office said in a tweet: "The Met Office has named StormFranklin.

"The storm is forecast to bring strong winds and heavy rain to the UK on Sunday and Monday.

People look at flood water in heavy snow in York city centre during Storm Eunice (PA)

"The strongest winds will be in Northern Ireland where an Amber weather warning has been issued. Stay WeatherAware."

Last week the UK was also bombarded by Storm Dudley, following a largely mild start to the winter.

Eunice earlier ripped the O2 Arena's roof "to pieces" and caused the spire at St Thomas' Church in Wells, Somerset, to topple.

The heavy gusts were felt in The Needles, Isle of Wight - stronger than those during the Great Storm of 1987, in which 18 people died.

A pair of rare red weather warnings also saw some regions declare major incidents.

A fallen tree is seen close to Waterloo Station (Getty Images)

Meteorologist Becky Mitchell said this is the first time the national forecaster has recorded three major storms in such quick succession since the naming system was introduced seven years ago.

She told the PA: "This is the first time we have had three named storms within a week, and we started the storm naming system in 2015.

"At the moment we've got a really active jet stream, which is why we're seeing so many storms track right towards the UK.

"We had Dudley on Wednesday, Eunice on Friday and Franklin today."

The Environment Agency has issued 44 flood warnings where "flooding is likely" for locations mainly in the north and west of England, and 117 alerts where "flooding is possible" for the north-western half of the UK, London and the south coast.

Some 18 flood warnings and seven alerts have also been issued across the Scottish Borders, Ayrshire, Orkney and the Western Isles by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.

Natural Resources Wales has issued six flood warnings for areas just east of Shrewsbury, and 25 alerts covering much of the country.

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