FRESH travel chaos has struck Britain as six rail operators have been hit by strikes and airports battered by gales from Storm Kathleen.
Dozens of flights have been cancelled this morning as winds of up to 70mph are set to strike the UK.
Story Picture AgencyPassengers are left stranded at Paddington Station after a derailment between Paddington and Heathrow[/caption]
Storm Kathleen will batter the west coast
LNPThe River Ouse burst its banks overnight[/caption]
RexGWR have been cancelled after Aslef workers launched industrial action[/caption]
About 70 flights departing and arriving at British airports before midday on Saturday had already been cancelled with more expected in the afternoon.
Rail passengers are also facing mayhem today as more operators are hit by strikes.
Football fans could be stuck at home or looking for other ways to get back home after some rail companies completely cancelled their services.
Pubs face losing nearly £400million as members of Aslef at six companies will walk out.
Chiltern, TransPennine Express and Northern will not run any trains, while there will be reduced services on Great Western Railway (GWR), LNER and Heathrow Express.
LNER said it plans to run 35 services between London, Edinburgh and West Yorkshire, while no Heathrow Express trains will run before 7.25am or after 7pm.
GWR said services will be reduced, with many parts of its network having no trains all day.
Engineering work means there will be no trains between London Paddington and Reading.
The strikes follow walkouts at Avanti West Coast, East Midlands Railway, West Midlands Railway, CrossCountry and London NorthWestern on Friday, which crippled services.
The Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for wind which covers the north west and south west of England and parts of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, from 8am to 10pm.
A further yellow warning for wind has been issued for north-west Scotland on Sunday between 9am and 3pm.
Kathleen is also bringing warmer temperatures that could reach up to 22C in East Anglia and potentially the hottest day of the year so far.
Snaps show how the River Ouse has burst its banks in York, flooding the city.
The Met Office said temperatures could reach up to 22C in East Anglia – while gusts of up to 70mph buffet western areas.
Forecaster Ellie Glaisyer said: “The storm is the reason we are seeing the warmer temperatures.
Storm Kathleen hits UK with 70mph winds while other parts bask in 22C
The Met Office said temperatures could reach up to 22C in East Anglia – while gusts of up to 70mph buffet western areas.
Forecaster Ellie Glaisyer said: “The storm is the reason we are seeing the warmer temperatures.
“The location of the storm – situated out towards the west of the UK – is bringing a southerly wind across the UK.
“This is bringing those warmer temperatures from the continent, meaning we are likely to see temperatures reaching 22C.”
“Storm Kathleen is likely to bring some heavy rain across the UK overnight, which will spread its way northwards across the country.”
Glaisyer added: “For most places it should be a relatively dry start to Saturday.
“However, the further west you are, where those strongest winds are in that yellow warning area, it will feel a little colder.”
“The location of the storm – situated out towards the west of the UK – is bringing a southerly wind across the UK.
“This is bringing those warmer temperatures from the continent, meaning we are likely to see temperatures reaching 22C.”
“Storm Kathleen is likely to bring some heavy rain across the UK overnight, which will spread its way northwards across the country.”
Glaisyer added: “For most places it should be a relatively dry start to Saturday.
“However, the further west you are, where those strongest winds are in that yellow warning area, it will feel a little colder.”
Why is the storm called Kathleen?
STORM Kathleen is named after Kathleen Kay Antonelli/McNulty and Kathleen Lonsdale.
It’s one of the seven names Met Eireann chose for the 2023-24 storm names list, with the Irish weather chiefs choosing eminent Irish/Northern-Irish scientists to honour their important contributions to science and the benefits for humankind.
Kathleen ‘Kay’ McNulty Mauchly Antonelli was one of the mothers of computer programming.
She was one of the six original programmers on the ENIAC machine, which was one of the first general purpose electronic digital computers.
Kathleen Lonsdale was an Irish crystallographer who demonstrated the crystal structure of benzene.
She was the first to use Fourier spectral methods while solving the structure of hexachlorobenzene in 1931.
RexReading Station empty this morning after strike action began[/caption]
Story Picture AgencyTrains to Heathrow were cancelled from Paddington Station following a derailment[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
