Storm Eowyn has hit the British Isles with hurricane-force winds as the tempest brings an ‘extreme and real’ threat to life, with some told to ‘shelter in place’.
Wind readings show southern and western Ireland bearing the early brunt of one of the strongest storms to ever hit the country.
Mace Head on the exposed Galway coast recorded a gust of 113mph at 5am, the strongest ever recorded in Ireland.
Figures of more than 80mph are appearing widely with Aberdaron in Gwynedd hitting 93mph and 70mph recorded in Cumbria.
But gusts of 80 to 90mph are expected widely inland in the warning areas, with speeds of up 100mph likely to rip along coasts as the storm progresses.
Millions of people will be in the path of the maelstrom, which is predicted to become one of the most powerful weather systems to hit the UK in recent years.
Rare red warnings for wind have been issued by the Met Office in Northern Ireland from 7am until 2pm on Friday, and for…
