Storm Ashley: 36 flood warnings issued as 80mph weather bomb barrels toward UK

The Environment Agency has issued dozens of flood warnings ahead of Storm Ashley which is due to pound the UK on Sunday with 80 mph winds and torrential rain.

The agency’s Flood Forecasting Centre, which covers England and Wales, currently has 36 red flood warnings in place, meaning “flooding is expected” as well as a further 128 orange flood alerts in place meaning “flooding is possible”.

The majority of the warnings and alerts are for the western half of the UK with the bulk of the warnings between Birmingham and Bristol. You can find out more about flooding in your area on the flood checker website.

The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) currently has 15 flood warnings and 14 flood alerts. “Coastal flooding impacts are likely around much of the coast around the times of high tide,” the agency warned.

“The period of greatest risk is around high tide between Sunday evening and early Monday morning, when significant coastal impacts are likely in the north west of , including the Western Isles, and could occur elsewhere.”

Caithness and Sutherland, Wester Ross, Western Isles have an amber warning on Sunday, which means: “Flooding affecting parts of communities. Danger to life and damage to buildings and disruption to infrastructure,” the agency said.

Gales of up to 80mph are due to hit some areas with torrential rain causing disruption and potentially closing roads as the government issues hundreds of flood warnings. The has issued an amber warning for the west coast of Scotland with forecasters warning there is a “good chance” of power cuts as the storm tears into the UK at around 9am on Sunday.

Meanwhile a yellow weather warning covers a much wider swathe of the UK from 3am on Sunday morning warning of damage to buildings, power cuts and injuries and danger to life from the high speed winds.

“Initially a period of strong south to south-easterly winds will likely develop through Sunday morning, with gusts of 50-60 mph possible in some inland areas, especially Northern Ireland and western Scotland, and perhaps up to 60-70 mph along exposed coasts and hills,” the Met Office said.

“Winds will then turn south-westerly, with a period of especially strong winds possible during Sunday afternoon and evening across western Scotland where gusts could potentially reach 70-80 mph in exposed areas, and more generally 55-65 mph in other parts of the warning area.”

The yellow weather warning covers Scotland, north western England, Northern Ireland and parts of west Wales, it lasts until midnight on Sunday. A smaller area of northern Scotland remains covered by a yellow warning for wind until 9am on Monday.