London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

Severe weather warning for UK as Storm Barra set to arrive on Tuesday

Severe weather warning for UK as Storm Barra set to arrive on Tuesday

The Met Office has issued severe weather warnings for most of the UK ahead of the arrival of Storm Barra on Tuesday, as thousands of homes remain without power more than a week after Storm Arwen.
Yellow wind weather warnings are in place across England, Wales and Northern Ireland for Tuesday, with yellow snow warnings in place in southern and western Scotland.

Storm Barra, a deep area of low pressure moving in from the Atlantic and the second named storm of the season, is expected to bring the strongest winds and impacts to the Republic of Ireland.

Two to five centimetres of snow is expected to accumulate widely across England and Scotland, but meteorologists said this could reach 10cm, particularly in parts of the Southern Uplands and Highlands.

Gusts of 45-50 mph are expected across the UK, with 60-70 mph winds in exposed coastal locations, which could affect the ability of engineers to restore power to homes.

The Energy Networks Association (ENA) said that 3,190 homes were waiting to be reconnected as of 2pm on Sunday, down from 4,025 homes on Sunday morning.

Most of the impacted homes are in the north-east of England, the ENA added.

During a visit to a Northern Powergrid call centre in Penshaw near Sunderland, the energy secretary, Kwasi Kwarteng, warned power firms the government will review their operations after continuing outages caused by Storm Arwen nine days ago.

“I think we can make the system a lot more resilient. We will have a review, we will see if the distributor companies have enough infrastructure, we may even have enforcement action if necessary,” he said.

After visiting crews working in Weardale, County Durham, the energy secretary said engineers have been working in freezing temperatures to restore power supplies: “There are very challenging conditions.

“There’s lots of ice, sleet, snow and it’s very difficult for the engineers to get vital infrastructure up and ready.

“Some of the communications have not been brilliant. It’s very difficult in a centre or hub like this to know what’s going on on the ground, but I think that’s improving.

“I think the engineers are doing a fantastic job, we have got the army out as well and they are all pulling together very effectively, but there are still a few hundred people who are still off power and I think that’s really unacceptable.”

Kwarteng said he disagreed that the response to the Storm Arwen power cuts would have been swifter if they had happened in the south-east of England: “The physical infrastructure, layout and landscape is very different. One of the particular reasons why we haven’t got people back on the power supply is the weather conditions and they are very challenging [with] people in sparsely populated, very rural areas, and that represents a challenge,” he said.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
×