Summary

Are you affected by the storm?

Live Reporting

Edited by Rorey Bosotti

  1. Yellow flood warnings across large parts of Scotland today

    The Scottish Environment Protection Agency warns that "sustained and heavy rain" is expected to affect parts of the nation throughout the weekend.

    On Saturday, a Yellow flood warning is in place for the following locations:

    • Aberdeenshire and Aberdeen City
    • Ayrshire and Arran
    • Central Scotland
    • Dumfries and Galloway
    • Dundee and Angus
    • Edinburgh and Lothians
    • Fife
    • Scottish Borders
    • Tayside
    • West Central Scotland

    A few areas will remain under this warning on Sunday, including:

    • Argyll and Bute
    • Ayrshire and Arran
    • Dumfries and Galloway
    Sunrise over sea front in MusselburghSend in the Clouds / BBC Weather Watchers

    There are various flood and weather warnings across Scotland for later today - but it was a relatively calm start in Musselburgh, near Edinburgh, this morning

  2. Strong winds and heavy rain expected to cause rail disruption in Scotland

    Passengers walk along the main area of Glasgow Central station, some of the are carrying bags or pushing trolleys aroundGetty Images

    Storm Boelo is expected to disrupt travel around Scotland today and on Sunday

    We can now bring you some more details on the cancelled train services ScotRail has already announced. They are:

    • Glasgow Central – Ayr line will close between Kilwinning and Ayr from 21:00 on Saturday, after which time a half-hourly shuttle service will operate between Glasgow Central and Kilwinning
    • Glasgow Queen Street – Oban / Mallaig line will close between Fort William and Mallaig and between Crianlarich and Oban from around 22:00
    • Inverness – Kyle of Lochalsh line will close between Kyle of Lochalsh and Achnashellach from the start of service on Sunday
    • Inverness – Wick / Thurso line will close between Helmsdale and Wick / Thurso from the start of service on Sunday

  3. When do we see the most named storms?

    Chris Fawkes
    BBC Weather presenter

    Bar chart showing Total number of named storms in the UK by month since 2015. Months along the x axis and number of storms up the x axis. The stormiest month is December, followed by January and February. May is the only month to have no named storms.BBC Weather

    The winter months of December, January and February typically produce the highest number of UK storms

    Although named storms can affect the UK at any time of the year, analysis shows they are much less common in spring and early summer.

    The only month with no named storms in the eleven years that we've been naming storms in the UK is May.

    The chances of seeing a storm increases from late summer and throughout autumn with the peak of the season arriving in our winter months.

    This increase in storminess is why the storm-naming season begins in September each year.

    In about half of the years since 2015, the first storm arrived after 1 November.

  4. South-west battled wet and windy weather as Storm Austen hit

    The UK is bracing for its second storm in two days, with the north hunkering down for Storm Boelo as the south-west recovers from Storm Austen.

    Here are some pictures from yesterday when Austen hit southern England, parts of Wales, and the Channel Islands, with gusts of up to 84mph recorded in Jersey.

    Members of the public stand on rocks beside the breaking waves at Portland Bill, southern England on 23 October 2026, as Storm Austen brings strong winds and heavy rainGetty Images

    Waves break at Portland Bill in Dorset

    Pieces of the West Pier in Brighton falling off into the sea on 23 October 2026PA Media

    Pieces of Brighton's iconic West Pier fell off into the sea during the wet and windy weather

    Tree fallen onto fence in Gorey on the island of Jersey

    Trees fell and fences were damaged by high winds in the Channel Islands

  5. How to prepare for power cuts

    A man in a yellow chequered shirt uses a torch to shine light on a plastic power boxGetty Images

    As well as travel disruptions being expected from Storm Boelo, some properties in areas under warning could be left without power.

    Power cuts can plunge communities into darkness and stop usual services from working, but here are some helpful tips on how to navigate an outage:

    • Candles and torches can replace lights during power cuts, although it's important to remember naked flames can pose a fire risk
    • Keep cash on hand asshops may not accept phone and card payments when the power is out
    • Tinned food and gas stoves will help keep you fed as microwaves, air fryers and some hobs and ovens demand electricity
    • Powerbanks can help keep your phone charged, allowing you to see the latest updates

    You can report a power cut online, or by calling 105, which is a free service in England, Scotland and Wales.

  6. Hundreds of properties still without power in south-west England

    Hundreds of homes and businesses are still without power after Storm Austen battered parts of the country yesterday.

    National Grid's map shows a concentration of power cuts in south-west England, the area worst affected by the storm.

    In Cornwall, one incident near Truro has left 478 properties without power, while another near Penryn is affecting 127 properties.

    One incident in Dorset is impacting 141 properties, with another 85 properties in Exmoor still without power. Both of these are not estimated to be resolved until 22:00 tonight, according to National Grid's website.

    These are just a few examples from the swarm of red and blue incident dots seen on the map.

    Map showing power cut incidents in south-west EnglandNational Grid

  7. Storm Boelo expected to cause widespread travel disruption across Scotland and north of England

    A ScotRail blue train alighted at a stationGetty Images

    ScotRail says speed restrictions will be in place on some routes, with some services not running and cancellations possible as Storm Boelo hits

    National Rail is warning that Storm Boelo may impact journeys and encouraging people to check before they travel.

    It says:

    • TransPennine Express is advising against anything but essential travel today and on Sunday - while there are no planned changes to the timetable today, speed restrictions will be in place across Scotland. Widespread disruption is expected on Sunday
    • Avanti West Coast is advising people to avoid travelling north of Preston on Sunday
    • LNER is advising against travel between Edinburgh and Aberdeen on Sunday
    • Northern will see a reduction in the number of trains operating on several routes today
    • Speed restrictions will be in place on certain ScotRail routes today, some services will not run and there will be cancellations of revisions across the entire network from 21:00 tonight - we've got more on Scottish travel disruption here
    • CrossCountry says services travelling to or from areas north of Newcastle will face a speed restriction today and tomorrow
    • Although there is no Met Office weather warning over Wales today, Transport for Wales is warning of weather-related disruption to its network - Wales was hit by Storm Austen yesterday

    Services in other parts of the country including Great Western are also warning there could be ongoing disruption today because of Storm Austen.

  8. Is it unusual to see two storms so close together?

    Chris Fawkes
    BBC Weather presenter

    It's not unusual to get storms so close together, in fact they quite often arrive in clusters.

    A strong jet stream is needed to rapidly develop powerful wind storms. The process of creating such storms involves shifting warmer air northwards and cooler air southwards across vast areas of the Atlantic.

    These temperature contrasts can provide a fertile environment for new low pressure systems to develop and if these subsequently get steered beneath a developmental area of a powerful jet stream, they can rapidly develop to create a new named storm with damaging winds.

  9. How much disruption was caused by Storm Austen

    A public safety sign is placed on the beach near Brighton’s West Pier which was further damaged when a section of the remaining structure broke away today during Storm Austen, in Brighton, Britain, October 23, 2026Reuters

    Storm Austen caused major disruption across parts of England and Wales on Friday - here's a recap:

    • Thousands of homes were left without power, and gusts of up to 84mph (135km/h) were recorded in Jersey
    • In Brighton, dramatic footage captured the collapse of part of the iconic West Pier as it fell into the sea
    • All schools on Jersey and Guernsey closed for the day and some in Cornwall were closed or started later than normal
    • Transport was also disrupted, with some ferry services between the UK and France cancelled and trains cancelled and delayed
    • Jersey Airport said flights wouldn't be running until at least 17:00 on Friday, while departure boards at Exeter airport also showed multiple cancellations
    The damage caused to a car hit by a tree in Horsham, West Sussex, on FridayRuss Slater

    The damage caused to a car hit by a tree in Horsham, West Sussex, on Friday

  10. Amber and yellow wind warnings in place for Scotland, northern England and Northern Ireland

    Screenshot of Met Office weather warnings, including one amber wind warning and two yellow wind warningsMet Office

    Yellow

    A yellow wind warning is in place for Scotland and northern England from midday today until 21:00 tomorrow, while another warning covers Northern Ireland from 10:00 today to 12:00 tomorrow.

    Amber

    The Met Office has issued an amber wind warning for Scotland, north-eastern parts of Northern Ireland, and parts of northern England, running from 21:00 tonight to 21:00 tomorrow.

    The national forecaster warns that flying debris is likely and could lead to injuries or danger to life. It also warns of transport disruption, power cuts and dangerous coastal conditions.

    Very strong westerly winds are expected with fairly widespread gusts of 60 to 70 mph and gusts to 80 mph in exposed coastal areas.

  11. Storm Boelo to bring 80mph winds as second storm hits UK

    Waves crash over the lighthouse at Newhaven Harbour during Storm Austen in Newhaven, Britain, October 23, 2026Reuters

    Waves crash over the lighthouse at Newhaven Harbour in East Sussex

    A second storm is set to hit the UK today, bringing strong winds and heavy rain to much of the country.

    Storm Boelo, the second named storm of the season, could cause travel disruption and power cuts on Saturday, with wind gusts of 60-70mph forecast, while exposed coastal areas could see speeds of up to 80mph.

    It comes just hours after Storm Austen swept across the country, leaving more than 60,000 homes without power in England and Wales, and causing school closures in Cornwall, Jersey and Guernsey.

    The Met Office has issued amber and yellow warnings for wind on Saturday and Sunday to cover parts of Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England.

    The strongest winds are expected in Scotland from Saturday evening, extending eastwards through Sunday, according to the weather agency.

    Train operators across the country have warned that services are likely to be disrupted over the weekend.

    Stick with us for the latest weather warnings and travel updates throughout the day.