³ÉÈËÂÛ̳

Storm Ashley is set to bring strong winds and heavy rain to the UK on Sunday.

Named by Ireland's Met Éireann on Friday morning, the storm has the potential to cause transport disruption, damage to buildings and power cuts.

The Met Office has issued an amber severe weather warning for wind gusts of 70-80mph (113-129km/h) for western Scotland on Sunday.

There is also a wider yellow severe weather warning for the whole of Scotland and Northern Ireland, and parts of north-west England and Wales, for wind gusts of 50-60mph (80-97km/h) inland and 60-70mph (97-113km/h) on coasts and hills.

The winds coincide with high spring tides which brings a risk of large waves and coastal overtopping.

Ashley, the first named storm of the 2024/25 season, will be developing rapidly in the Atlantic on Saturday night, undergoing "explosive cyclogenesis".

This is when the central pressure of a storm drops by at least 24 millibars in 24 hours, making it a significant weather system with strong winds.

This is sometimes also referred to as a "weather bomb", a phrase taken from the US term "bombogenesis", meaning the same rapid development.

Most parts of the UK will experience those strong winds on Sunday but the north and west will bear the brunt.

While Storm Ashley will clear to the north of the UK by Monday morning, it will remain windy throughout Monday.

The latest storm name season started on 1 September and will be used until 31 August 2025.

Ashley is the first name on the alphabetical list so the next storm would be named Bert, followed by Conall.

Storms can be named by the Met Office, Met Éireann or the Netherlands meteorological service (KNMI) if any believe impacts from severe weather are "medium" or "high".

It is thought that by naming storms, it gives the public a greater awareness of the potential impacts of severe weather.