Ireland, western UK, storm Awyn shuts down transport, leaves thousands without power.

London – Some gales hit Ireland, Northern Ireland and mainland UK on Friday. As the islands weathered the brunt of Storm Ewe, it was expected to spread across the region, including the full extent of Scotland.

Met Éireann, the Republic of Ireland’s national meteorological service, said the country was being hit by gusts of up to 114mph in County Galway – the highest ever recorded on the island.

The Republic of Ireland was under a “red warning” from the Meteorological Agency – meaning the public was warned that the storm was “extremely destructive and dangerous”.

The state-run ESB Networks, which is responsible for most of Ireland’s electricity grid, said on Friday morning that more than 715,000 homes, farms and businesses were without power as a result of the storm. More power outages are expected throughout Friday, ESB said.

More than 230 flights scheduled to take off or arrive at Dublin Airport were canceled on Friday morning due to the severe weather, with all public transport across Ireland suspended as government officials warned people to stay indoors.

The UK Met Office said the same on Friday. Red warning notices They were in parts of Northern Ireland and Scotland.

Winds of more than 90mph were recorded in parts of Northern Ireland and North Wales on Friday morning as the storm moved into the UK. Many trains and other public transport options were closed in the north of the UK and there were initial reports of wind damage to trees and buildings.

The UK’s chief meteorologist, Jason Kelly, said in a statement on Friday: “The storm is now moving into parts of the UK. “Anyone in these red and amber warning areas should listen to advice from local responders and keep up to date with weather warnings for their area.”

In the UK, the most severe red warnings are for Northern Ireland and far northern England and southern and central Scotland, indicating potentially life-threatening conditions, while an amber warning area indicates travel disruption and the risk of flying debris. It covered a vast area stretching as far south as Manchester and Liverpool.