Storm Arwen: 12 of the most dramatic pictures and videos as UK battered by 100mph winds

There have been dramatic scenes across the UK after Storm Arwen brought gusts of almost 100mph, causing road closures, train delays and power cuts.

At least two people have been killed in different parts of the country as trees were blown over in the strong winds.

Cumbria Police said a man from Lancaster died in Ambleside after a tree fell on him just before 11pm on Friday. In Northern Ireland, a man was killed when his car was hit by a falling tree in County Antrim, also on Friday.

The Met Office had issued a red wind warning for parts of north-east England. Although the warning expired early on Saturday, the forecaster said amber and yellow warnings for wind remained in place across large swathes of the country.

A few inches of snow also fell across Scotland and parts of England, with more expected.

Marco Petagna, a Met Office forecaster, told the PA news agency: “We’ve seen some pretty severe gusts overnight with the highest speeds hitting 98mph at Brizlee Wood in Northumberland.

“Elsewhere, exposed sites in Scotland and Northern Ireland also surpassed 90mph, with 70-80mph seen more widely in the north of the UK, though parts of southern England and Wales also felt the effects of the storm.

“This has been coupled with a few inches of snow which has fallen in some areas.

“In the higher ground areas of Scotland we expected to see up to 15cm falling but the strong winds meant the snow blew around and created a blizzard in some parts.”

Wind speeds reached 87mph in Orlock Head, Co Down.

Inverbervie on the north-east coast of Scotland had gusts of 78mph, while Aberporth in Wales saw speeds of 77mph.

People have sharing pictures and videos of scenes from their homes, with several coming from hard-hit areas of Scotland:

There have also been snow blizzards in the north Pennines:

And there’s been dramatic scenes across the rest of England:

People have been advised to be wary of travelling on Saturday, as train networks across the UK reported disruption to services.

All Avanti West Coast services North of Carlisle were cancelled on Saturday, with customers “strongly advised” not to attempt to travel on the route. Other services are running but may be subject to delays of 120 minutes.

ScotRail services were disrupted between Edinburgh and Glasgow Queen Street, Dunblane and Stirling after a barn was blown on to the line close to Polmont, near Falkirk.

TransPennine Express customers were urged not to travel, with services between Newcastle and Edinburgh cancelled.

South Western Railway expected disruption on Saturday morning due to “multiple trees and obstructions blocking the railway”, while London North East Railway warned customers not to travel north of York due to “significant damage”.

Homes across all parts of the UK were damaged as the gusts struck.

Mr Petagna said: “There has been plenty of disruption caused by these severe gales, stretching down from south-west England and as far as northern parts of Scotland.

“But I have to say we’ve seen the worst of the weather and things will start to fizzle out over Saturday, though people will still see snow and fairly strong gales.”

Amber wind warnings are in place for Saturday morning in south-west and north-east England, while a yellow warning stretches across central England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and is expected to last until 6pm.

It means people should expect gusts in excess of 70mph, bringing further disruption with more power cuts, flying debris and travel delays.

The Met Office warned that north-east and north-west England, the West Midlands and the East Midlands will experience cold weather until Monday.

Snow warnings remain in place across large parts of England, including the South East, and Scotland as a cold northerly airflow moves across the country, with up to 5cm expected.

Mr Petagna said a yellow warning for ice is likely to be issued for northern England and Scotland on Saturday.