Two people have died and 1,105,000 properties across the UK and Ireland have now lost electricity due to Storm Eowyn.
Falling trees and flying debris were blamed for knocking out power lines after fierce winds of up to 114mph battered the British Isles, with many families forced to move to warm hubs to escape the cold.
Northern Ireland’s energy network said 280,000 of its customers were without power on Friday afternoon, while Scottish officials issued an update stating 100,000 households in Scotland were in the same situation.
The Republic of Ireland’s energy network said 725,000 customers were without power, and some may not have it restored for up to a week.
Irish police said a man in County Donegal was killed when a tree fell on his car, while a man in Scotland is believed to have been killed by falling roof tiles.
Red weather warnings remain in place in parts of Scotland with the Met Office warning of a significant risk to life posed by flying debris as well as damage to buildings and power lines.
Schools are closed, numerous train lines are down and over 1,000 flights scheduled to fly to and from British and Irish airports have been cancelled, affecting an estimated 50,000 people.
Live Feed
All the weather warnings in place as the weekend begins
Here are the Met Office weather alerts which will be in force as the country wakes up on Saturday.
Ice – yellow warning: 3am to 10am in the East Midlands, West Midlands, East of England, South East England, South West England, Wales.
Snow & ice – yellow warning: Midnight to 11am in Scotland (mainland).
Wind – yellow warning: Midnight to 3pm in Central and northern Scotland, Scottish Isles.
Wind – amber warning: Now until 6am in Scottish Highlands, northern Scotland, Scottish Isles.
‘Lucky’ man narrowly avoids whack to the head from falling roof tile
A man in Belfast escaped a potentially severe head injury while trying to secure his trampoline during Storm Eowyn.
Footage shows a roof tile falling and smashing into the ground just inches from his feet as he moved objects onto the trampoline in his garden in the Anderstown area.
Visibly startled, he then raises his hands up to his head and dashes inside.
Lucky boy there in Andersonstown pic.twitter.com/QgGYWioDPS
— TheMonk88 (@themonk1967) January 24, 2025
Rare weather phenomenon behind record-breaking winds revealed
An unusual weather pattern known as a ‘sting jet’ was responsible for record-breaking gusts of wind in Ireland, the Met Office has said.
A wind speed of 114mph recorded in County Galway this morning has been provisionally declared the fastest ever in the country.
A sting jet is a narrow and short-lived but extremely powerful current of wind sometimes created by cyclones.
The area they affect is often no wider than 60 miles and they often last no more than 3 to 4 hours – but have potentially devastating effects.
Storm Eowyn has brought fierce winds across large portions of the British Isles, however, with speeds of over 90mph recorded in Scotland.
Iconic 400-year-old tree torn in half
An ancient tree in Glasgow rumoured to have once sheltered Mary Queen of Scots has been severely damaged by Storm Eowyn.
Much of the top half of the iconic Darnley Sycamore, thought to be around 450 years old, appeared to have been torn off.
The collapse reportedly happened shortly aftter noon, when wind speeds of over 90mph were recorded in Scotland.
Legend has it that Mary and her husband, Henry Stuart, sat beneath the tree as she nursed him back to health following an illness.
Footage shows scale of destruction across UK wrought by Storm Eowyn
Collapsed buildings, flying sheds, upturned lorries and toppled trees are among the scenes of destruction seen across the UK as Storm Eowyn rages on.
Many areas are experiencing winds of more than 90mph, strong enough to lift light structures and throw them around.
More than a million properties remain without electricity after trees were hurled onto power lines and poles were overturned.
Trampoline, sofa and shed blown onto train lines
Storm Eowyn’s 90mph winds have been strong enough to blow large items of garden furniture onto train tracks.
A trampoline, a sofa, a shed and wheelie bins are among the debris which have blocked rail lines in Scotland, ScotRail said.
The operator warned people to make sure items in the garden are properly secured.
Homeowner ‘in shock’ after tree crashes through living room window in front of him
A homeowner survived a potential brush with death after a huge tree crashed into his house in Basildon.
Richard Dunn, 58, says he was in his living room when he heard a loud noise and saw the tree smash through his window earlier today.
Storm Eowyn continues to batter the British Isles with winds of up to 114mph, with two dead in Scotland and Ireland respectively.
Two dead in incidents believed to have been caused by Storm Eowyn
Two men have died in Ireland and the UK in circumstances believed to be linked to Storm Eowyn.
Irish police said a man in County Donegal was killed when a tree fell on his car on Friday afternoon.
Earlier in the day another man, aged 49, was found unresponsive in Irvine, Scotland, and pronounced dead at the scene.
Police said they are treating the death as ‘unexplained’, but the Daily Record reported he was ‘hit by falling roof tiles’.
More than 1,100,000 homes now without power
A total of 1,105,000 properties across the UK and Ireland have now lost electricity due to Storm Eowyn.
Falling trees and flying debris were blamed for knocking out power lines after fierce winds of up to 114mph battered the British Isles.
Northern Ireland’s energy network said 280,000 of its customers were without power on Friday afternoon, while Scottish officials issued an update stating 100,000 households in Scotland were in the same situation.
The Republic of Ireland’s energy network said 725,000 customers were without power, and some may not have it restored for up to a week.
All trains in Scotland to remain suspended until tomorrow
ScotRail has extended the suspension of its train services until midday tomorrow.
The operator previously said the network would only be out of action for today.
A full assessment of damage to tracks and lines will likely ‘take quite a bit of time’, a spokesperson said.
Girl named Éowyn celebrates sixth birthday
There’s a silver lining in the otherwise menacing clouds over Wiltshire for one local family.
Éowyn Lacey-Webb happens to be celebrating her sixth birthday on the same day as her namesake storm set in.
Éowyn spent her birthday morning painting a picture of the storm and playing with her hair, according to mum Sabrina Lacey – though she was disappointed there was no snow.
Scots brave Storm Eowyn conditions to go swimming in freezing loch
Two swimmers braved the open water in a chilly loch this morning to keep up a month-long challenge as Storm Éowyn swept across the UK.
The pair waded in to support a community mental health service despite the Met Office warning of ‘dangerous winds’ in parts of Scotland.
Another member of the Water Wavers group assured Metro that the swimmers were safe in the choppy water at Hillend Loch by Airdrie Angling Club in North Lanarkshire, which is currently subject to a Met Office red weather warning.
Colin Caruth, who is also co-director of challenge beneficiary Lanarkshire Counselling & CBT Centre CIC, said that the water is shallow and regularly used by the group.
The members are attempting to take a cold dip every day during January — with some also opting to use back garden ‘pods’ or take cold showers.
Colin explained that as well as raising money to allow people to access free mental health therapy that might otherwise be unavailable, unaffordable or subject to a long waiting list, the daily immersion brings physical and mental health benefits.
‘We know that loch really well and at the part we go in it’s not too deep, so they took a safe judgement to go into it,’ he said.
Colin, 62, from Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire, added: ‘The cold water is invigorating and the group has created a lot of friendships and a lot of bonding.
‘Going into the cold water is about being comfortable while being uncomfortable.
‘It does nip but for your mental and physical health it’s a game changer, which is why you see cold water therapy all over the place.’
More about the challenge can be found here
100mph gust of wind smashes into Scotland
A gust of 100mph has been recorded at Drumalbin in Scotland, believed to be the strongest wind to hit the UK today.
It leapfrogs a gust of 93mph recorded at Aberdaron in Gwynedd, north Wales this morning as the UK’s strongest wind so far.
The strongest wind of the storm overall though was a gust of 114mph which smashed into Mace Head on the west coast of Ireland, County Galway at around 7am – believed to be the strongest wind Irish history.
Red weather warning lifted in Northern Ireland
The red weather warning in Northern Ireland has now officially ended, the Met Office reports
It has been replaced by an amber warning which will remain in place until 9pm.
A yellow warning will be in force until midnight.
Almost a million people have been left without water and electricity after record-breaking winds knocked large parts of the power grid offline this morning, which power supplier ESB warns could take some time to get back online.
When will Storm Eowyn end?
Storm Éowyn will continue to bring its strongest winds to Northern Ireland and Scotland throughout Friday, with gusts exceeding 90 mph expected to continue throughout the day.
The red weather warnings are expected to be lifted at 2pm in Ireland and 5pm in Scotland. The winds are expected to ease gradually by 8pm, although amber warnings will remain in place overnight for the most affected regions.
Saturday morning will see the amber alert in northern Scotland lifted at around 6am, although gusts of 50-70 mph will continue to batter the region throughout the morning.
By 10am Saturday, winds will have eased significantly as the storm clears to the northeast, leaving breezy but calmer conditions across the UK.
On Sunday, a new low-pressure system will bring further rain and strong winds, though less intense than Storm Éowyn. This system will primarily impact western and southern parts of the UK and could hinder recovery efforts in areas affected by the storm.
Car demolished by falling bricks in Sunderland
A Nissan Micra car stands demolished under a pile of bricks on Newcastle Road in Sunderland today as strong winds brought by Storm Eowyn wreak havoc across the country.
Strongest Storm Éowyn wind in the UK so far recorded
The UK’s highest wind speed so far today has been recorded at Brizlee Wood in Northumberland, with a 96mpg gust ripping through the grassy plains.
Flight to Edinburgh unable to land
Ryanair flight RK596 left Stansted at 8.35am. Two hours and 44 minutes later, the Boeing 737 landed.
But rather than its destination, Edinburgh, passengers were back in Stansted. The pilot had been forced to circle around the borders before heading back because the strong winds make it impossible to land.
Roughly two in 10 flights scheduled to operate to or from airports in the UK or Ireland have been cancelled, according to aviation analytics company Cirium.
What is a ‘sting jet’?
Earlier today, a 114mph gust smashed into Mace Head on the west coast of Ireland, County Galway.
The Met Office says a ‘sting jet’ is to blame for this record-breaking wind.
Sting jets, which get their name from looking like a pointed stinger on a satellite, are tiny corridors of intense or even extreme wind.
They typically only happen over the ocean ocean and form when strong winds blow clouds into the dry slot of a low-pressure system. This dries out the air, making it sink which drags wind to the ground.
Tens of thousands without power in Scotland
At least 20,000 SP Energy Networks customers are without power, the utlity company says.
Fallen trees and debris have downed power lines, Aileen Rourke, of SP Energy Networks, said.
‘As soon as it is safe to do so, our engineers will be out in the field working to get the power back on for people as soon as we can,’ she added.
MORE: Hammersmith Bridge could stay closed until 2035
MORE: Son charged with murdering architect father, 75, in £3,500,000 London home
