Thousands of schools are expected to close, with drivers also warned to stay off the roads and rail services suspended amid rare red weather warnings as Storm Eowyn gets set to batter parts of the UK.

Storm forecasters say "a strong event cannot be ruled out" in the UK - with an explosive cyclogenesis caused by a major drop in air pressure bringing the "risk of a few tornados".

A rare red weather warning for wind has been issued by the Met Office, with Storm Éowyn expected to bring gusts of up to 100mph to the UK. The “danger to life” warning is in place on Friday from 7am to 2pm across the whole of Northern Ireland and between 10am and 5pm across parts of Scotland.

Ireland’s Met Éireann has issued a rare nationwide red warning, the most serious, for wind across the country between 2 a.m. and 10 p.m. It said there’s a possible “danger to life” as well as “extremely dangerous travelling conditions” and the prospect of “coastal flooding in low-lying and exposed areas”

IT IS UNDERSTOOD that Fine Gael leader Simon Harris will take a beefed-up role as Foreign Affairs Minister within the next government.A draft programme for government will be published later today, following meetings of the Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael parliamentary party.

Dangerous conditions are expected with the top level red warning for wind issued for Northern Ireland and parts of Scotland across Friday morning. The Met Office has issued weather warnings across the UK, but the worst of Storm Eowyn is expected to strike across the island of Ireland from early on Friday.

Red warning for wind posing 'danger to life' issued by weather agency while amber warning in place for parts of Scotland, north of England, with gusts forecast up to 80-90mph - Anadolu Ajansı

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Storm Eowyn is set to unleash havoc across the UK, with a rare red wind warning issued for parts of Northern Ireland and Scotland. The storm could bring very dangerous conditions and widespread disruption,

A tornado warning has been issued ahead of the arrival of Storm Eowyn set to batter UK’s coasts with 100mph winds this weekend.The Met Office issued a rare red warning across Northern Ireland and Scotland which will see winds rapidly during the Friday morning rush hour with peak gusts of 80-90 mph fairly widely and perhaps up to 100 mph along some exposed coasts.

The arrival of Storm Éowyn on Friday could bring gusts of up to 100mph and 'flying debris resulting in a danger to life'

Storm Eowyn, the first named storm of 2025, is set to bring strong winds of up to 100mph over the next few days