Key events
The Met Office has provided top tips for staying safe during strong winds – how to drive safely to protect your country from damage.
You can read it here.
With such strong winds, Darragh is also expected to bring heavy rain over the weekend, with more than 120 places in flood warnings this morning.
A rain warning is in place for Wales from 3am to 6pm on Saturday with heavy rain likely to lead to disruption to transport and infrastructure.
The Welsh FA have postponed all of Saturday’s matches
The Football Association of Wales said all matches in the country on Saturday were postponed due to Storm Darragh, following advice from the Met Office.
“It is not safe to operate in such weather, including traveling and away from football matches,” the association said in a statement on its website.
“Clubs have been advised to check and secure any loose items around their heads if it is safe to do so. This includes bins, furniture, goalpost, and fence etc.
Any fixing of Sunday’s delay, he said, would be considered on a “case-by-case basis, according to each plan’s contract.”
In the Championship, Cardiff City’s Saturday home game against Watford was also postponed on Friday evening “for the safety of the supporters”, the club said on its website, with no new date yet set for the fixture.
“All tickets purchased for this game will remain valid for the scheduled time,” the club said.
Thousands left without power
Thousands of people across Ireland, England and Wales have been left without power as Storm Darragh hits.
As of 5am, National Grid had lost more than 12,600 premises in the Midwest and South West, and more than 20,000 homes in Wales had been disconnected.
A statement from the Northern Ireland Electricity Network website said the authority was unable to provide an estimate of restoration times.
“Due to the number of faults we are currently experiencing in the network, we are unable to provide a time estimate for restoring the electricity supply at this time,” it read.
“We are working to restore supplies as quickly and safely as possible.”
Irish residents urged to take red warnings ‘very seriously’
Seven counties in the Republic of Ireland were under a red wind warning overnight.
Nisl warned of potential disruption and some flights were cancelled. A series of festive events is also being held throughout the weekend.
At the highest level the counties of Eireann met Mayo, Clare, Galway, Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo and Wicklow.
Taoiseach Simon Harris has urged residents in areas covered by red warnings to take them “very seriously”.
“A red storm warning means no travel during that period of time, and although it is Friday night and until Christmas time, I really encourage you to pay attention to that warning and indeed to stick to the next weather plan,” he said hours ago.
“Of course, the orange storm is also warning the rest of the country. So of course, people should avoid any necessary travel in that area at all. These reminders are important for people to take care of very seriously in the hours before life.
In Mayo the warning came into effect at 9pm on Friday and will continue until 3am. For Clare and Galway, focus on location from 9pm to 2am. In Donegal, Leitrim and Sligo, the warning came into effect at 10pm and was in place until 3am. A red warning for Wicklow is in effect from 1am to 6am on Saturday.
ESB Networks said high winds are expected to cause damage to electricity infrastructure, particularly in counties subject to red warnings.
The rest of the Republic of Ireland will be covered by an orange wind warning by Met Eireann. In Munster and Connacht, that warning comes into effect at 8pm on Friday and will extend to 10am on Saturday.
Bridges closed, and closures disrupted ferry and air services
The Prince of Wales, M4, and Sabrini Bridge, M48, which connect south-west England to Wales, were closed due to strong winds from Darragh, National Highways said.
Dublin Airport has confirmed that a number of flights to other airports have been diverted due to the weather.
A number of British Airways flights to and from Heathrow, Paris, the United States and the Netherlands have also been cancelled.
Network Rail Wales said all train services west of Cardiff have been suspended until further notice due to falling trees closing the line.
National Rail said Storm Darragh is expected to affect services across the network, warning people to check their journey in full before travelling, as it could mean the last services of the day are canceled and passengers may not reach their destination.
You can find details of National Rail service disruptions here.
Chiltern Railways is advising customers to only travel if absolutely necessary on Saturday, with significant disruption expected across the network.
Reduced operating hours, with one hour on all routes. Chiltern said customers can use Saturday tickets on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday instead.
Stena Line said the weather was “throwing up” some sailings over the coming days, and Bristol Airport said disruption was expected.
“Passengers are advised to check with the airline before travelling,” said a warning at Bristol Airport.
Three million people were set up to receive an emergency mobile phone
The Cabinet Office announced an emergency at 6.45pm on Friday for 3 million people in areas covered by a rare red Met Office wind warning for parts of Wales and south-west England.
The emergency alert system sent a message to all mobile phones in the affected areas, including information about the red alert and guidance on how to stay safe on Saturday.
This line includes what he said: “Strong winds can cause flying debris, falling trees and large waves around coastal areas, all of which can present a risk to life. Stay inside if you can. It is not safe to act under these conditions.’
The biggest use of the intensive system was outside the mission test – the last test in April 2013.
It is understood the inhabitants of Devon, Bath and East Somerset, the city of Bristol, North Somerset, South Gloucester, Somerset, the Isle of Anglesey, Gwynedd, Conwy, Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Swansea, Port Talbot Ned, Bridgend, the valley. Glamorgan, Cardiff, Monmouthshire and Newport were targeted.
Mobile phones made a siren sound even though they were silent. The sound and vibration lasted about 10 seconds.
The warning, which has led to the cancellation of the event including Christmas entertainment, is in place from 3am to 11am on Saturday.
The Met Office has warned of “damaging winds” with gusts of 90mph (145km/h) possible across the borders and hills of west and south Wales. The forecasters say that the strongest winds of late will begin to ease in the morning.
‘Danger to life’ warning for parts of UK as storm hits Darragh
James Grierson
A red wind warning, meaning “danger to life”, has been issued by the Met Office for parts of Wales and the west west. of England as Storm Darragh arrives in the UK.
Gusts of 90mph (145km/h) or more are possible on the coast and hills to the west and south Cambriathen a funnel through the Bristol Channel with some big waves landing on the shores, the forecaster said.
A rare red warning was in place from 3am to 11am on Saturday, and indicated a risk to life due to flying debris and falling trees.
A wind warning is already in place for large parts of the UK, with power cuts and flying debris possible amid the arrival of Storm Darragh, the fourth storm of the season.
A weather warning for “potentially reduced” winds is in place on Saturday from 1am to 9pm for the west coast of Britain from South Ayrshire in Scotland to Cornwallnor in Northern Ireland.
Yellow warnings for wind and rain on Thursday for parts of northern Ireland, Wales; Scotland and England on Friday extended to the east and south of England.
Flying objects can cause injury or danger to life and damage to buildings, such as tiles blown off roofs, the Met Office said. Power cuts and high tides should be expected, and some roads and bridges will be closed, with falling trees posing an additional hazard.
National Highways, which runs the UK’s motorways and busiest roads, has issued a severe storm warning for Saturday and motorists in the west and north-south to the west and south-west have been advised to prepare helmets for the force of the winds.
He said roads affected by the strongest winds include the M5 in North Somerset, the A30 in Cornwall and the M6 in Cheshire.
Heavy winds are already affecting the road in parts of the UK with the M48 Severn Bridge in Gloucestershire closed on Thursday night due to windy weather.
A yellow rain warning will be in place for Ireland and North Wales, which have been badly affected by flooding in Storm Bert, from 3pm on Friday until 12pm on Saturday.
Up to 60mm of rain could fall in these areas during the warning period, which could lead to some flooding and disruption, forecasters said.