Britons Advised to Brace for Strong Hurricane Gonzalo Bearing Winds Up to 75mph; Affects Flights, Train Services
Hurricane Gonzalo is expected to batter Britain later on Monday all through Tuesday, with heavy rain and strong winds that could hit 75mph. Air and train services operators have announced travel disruptions in view of the expected weather disturbance.
Heathrow airport said it will be cancelling 10 per cent of flights with its biggest 20 air carriers. It has yet to be known how many passengers or flights will be exactly affected by the service cancellations. British Airways has already cancelled its flights between Amsterdam and London.
Virgin Trains has also forewarned commuters and travellers its services may get affected by the heavy rains. Although no longer a hurricane, Gonzalo is still capable of doing damage. Weather forecasters cautioned residents to be on alert as hurricane Gonzalo's winds could bring trees down.
Sean Penston, a forecaster with MeteoGroup, said hurricane Gonzalo will strengthen its winds and rain over Ireland as it comes in from the Atlantic in the middle of Monday evening. It will first reach the north-western parts of Britain, with wind gusts predicted to hit 45mph over north-western parts of Scotland by midnight. And then during the night, these will increase to gusts up to 75mph.
The storm will then move eastwards, varying in intensity across the UK. The strongest gusts, however, will be felt on the coasts. "We can expect gusts up to 65mph in the north west tomorrow morning, and up to 50mph in central and eastern parts of England in the afternoon," he said. The region has received a "yellow" weather warning from the Met Office on Tuesday.
There might be some light flooding in affected areas as fallen leaves impede drainage systems. The severe gales and torrential downpours could also damage buildings and cause power outages.
Gonzalo formed on Oct 12, east of the Caribbean Sea. It strengthened as it passed through the Leeward Islands. It affected Antigua and Saint Martin as well as Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. But the worst damage was inflicted in Bermuda. On Saturday, it made landfall on the island at Category 2 strength with winds of up to 110 mph.