A rare red weather warning has been issued for Storm Eunice as it looks set to batter the UK with gusts of up to 100mph.

The warning has been issued for along the coastline of Devon and Cornwall as well as the south coast of Wales as extremely strong winds are predicted.

Emergency COBRA meeting as Eunice heads towards UK – live weather updates

The highest level of alert for southwest England comes after the Met Office upgraded its “danger to life” amber alert covering almost the whole of England – warning of more outages and travel chaos on the roads and train lines.

A “stay indoors” alert was already in place as Storm Eunice approaches, with stronger winds than Storm Dudley, heavy snow and blizzard conditions in places.

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Forecasters had warned Eunice would be more damaging than Dudley, which left tens of thousands of homes without power, downed trees, disrupted travel services and caused flooding in areas.

The Met Office said a red warning means “dangerous weather is expected” with it “very likely that there will be a risk to life, with substantial disruption to travel, energy supplies and possibly widespread damage to property and infrastructure”.

UK weather live news: Storm Eunice to bring 100mph winds and heavy snow as Met Office issues rare red warning

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People are also advised to avoid travelling where possible with Storm Eunice predicted to cause significant disruption and dangerous conditions.

A COBRA emergency meeting – spearheaded by Cabinet Office Minister Michael Ellis – will meet on Thursday “to discuss the response to Storm Dudley and Storm Eunice”, the government said.

Check the forecast in your area

⚠️⚠️🔴 Rare Red Weather Warning Issued 🔴⚠️⚠️#StormEunice will bring extremely strong winds across parts of Southwest England and south Wales

Friday 0700 – 1200

Latest info 👉 https://t.co/QwDLMfRBfs

Advice 👉 https://t.co/JFRa8CtfWY

Stay #WeatherAware⚠️ pic.twitter.com/m46eseAXoV

Storm Eunice will move in on Friday, bringing potentially damaging winds to the south and snow to the north.

The Met Office has issued yellow and amber warnings for wind and snow through to Friday evening.

An amber wind warning covers Wales and central and southern England, where gusts will widely reaching 60-70mph on Friday, with up to 100mph possible in some spots.

A yellow wind and snow warning covers northern parts of the UK.

Read more: What is a sting jet and how could it make Storm Eunice deadly?

On Wednesday, Storm Dudley winds hit 81mph in Capel Curig in North Wales, while Emley Moore in West Yorkshire recorded 74mph.

These conditions are expected to continue into Friday with Storm Eunice which is predicted to be even more damaging.

A parked car in Salford was crushed after strong winds blew bricks off the side of a house onto it.

No one was trapped in the vehicle at the time but police and fire crews were called to the scene.

In Cardiff, a train named after fundraiser Captain Tom Moore hit a trampoline.

Coastal areas such as Blackpool also saw choppy seas and large waves, with authorities warning people not to take risks to get a dramatic selfie.

Red warnings are issued rarely: the last one was in November 2021 ahead of the arrival of Storm Arwen, which saw very strong winds batter areas on the east coast of Scotland and north-east coast of England.

Before then – several were issued across the UK in late February and early March 2018 during the so-called “Beast from the East”. The winter storm brought widespread heavy snow and freezing temperatures.

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