Millions to Stay Indoors as One of the Worst Eunice Storms Hits the UK

The Met Office has issued a second rare red weather warning to cover London, the southeast, and east of England.

A red warning, meaning there is a danger to life from flying debris is already set to cover parts of southwest England and south Wales.

Hundreds of schools will be closed, all trains in Wales are suspended and the Army is on standby.

Forecasters warn Eunice could bring wind gusts of up to 90mph on Friday, causing significant disruption and power cuts.

BBC Weather said it "could well be one of the worst storms in three decades".

Eunice is the second storm in a week for the UK after Storm Dudley battered parts of Scotland, northern England, and Northern Ireland, leaving thousands of homes without power.

Red weather warnings are rare and mean that roofs could be blown off, power lines brought down and trees uprooted - as well as flying debris which could cause a danger to life.

The last red warning was for Storm Arwen in November last year, but before that one had not been issued since the so-called "Beast from the East" in 2018.

BBC Weather meteorologist Ben Rich said he expected Eunice to "cause damage, huge disruption and coastal flooding" - but he said it was "impossible to know exactly how bad this storm is going to be".

"Winds of the same strengths will cause different impacts in different regions of the UK - for example, coasts of western Scotland are far better prepared for 80mph winds than inland parts of southern England."

BBC Wales weatherman Derek Brockway said although Eunice was not a hurricane, winds would reach hurricane force level.

People have been warned to "tie-down" objects in their gardens, fasten doors and windows and keep cars locked in garages if possible away from trees and walls.

And the Met Office said people should avoid traveling if they could and stay at home when winds reach the highest speeds.

Hundreds of schools are staying shut on Friday due to the high winds - including in Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, and Bristol.

There are concerns that Storm Eunice's strong winds and a possible storm surge could combine with high spring tides to bring coastal flooding to the west, south-west, and south coast of England.