The UK is set for heavy downpours this week as amber alerts have been issued for Storm Ciaran, which is set to bring 80mph winds and up to 60mm of rain.
The worst of the weather is likely to hit the south coast of England, much of Wales and parts of Northern Ireland on Monday, the Met Office said.
Amber warnings have now been issued by the Met Office in Northern Ireland. In effect from 9pm today to 9am on Tuesday, the forecasters said: “Further rain will affect Northern Ireland during Monday evening and overnight, becoming heavy and persistent in the east.
“25-50 mm of rain falling widely and as much as 75 to 100 mm over hills, this falling on already saturated ground. The rain will ease from the south through Tuesday morning.”
Marco Petagna, a Met Office meteorologist, said that gusts of 80mph are possible along the south coast of England due to a “nasty storm”.
Mr Petagna added that 20 to 25mm of rain was expected across southern and western areas, but this could rise to 40 to 60mm over higher ground.
“We’ve had various warnings in force across the UK over the last few days and there are plenty more being issued for the next couple of days,” he said.
“The main focus in the next day or two is towards the east of Scotland and northeast England where there is a yellow rain warning until 3am.
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“There will be persistent rain up there and then the focus for heavy showers will be across parts of southern and southeastern England and south Wales as well parts of Northern Ireland with some heavy and sudden showers as well.”
Image: Met Office weather warnings for the UK on Monday, 30 October 2023
Image: Met Office weather warnings for the UK on Tuesday, 31 October 2023
Image: Met Office weather warnings for the UK on Wednesday, 1 November 2023
Mr Petagna said that Tuesday – Halloween – was expected to be still unsettled but quieter before heavy winds and longer spells of rain develop on Wednesday night into Thursday as Storm Ciaran arrives.
The weather is expected to worsen as the week progresses, with rain warnings in place until Thursday, and a “deep area of low pressure” set to arrive the same day.
The forecaster advised that Ciaran could lead to disruption on roads and public transport while already flood-affected areas following Storm Babet could get worse.
The Environment Agency has also issued 72 flood warnings from Wednesday.
Image: The car park of Bognor Regis Tesco. Pic: Eddie Mitchell
Image: The Riverside Caravan Park in Bognor Regis. Pic: Eddie Mitchell
Over the weekend, areas in Sussexwere hit by flooding. The Priory Meadow Shopping Centre in Hastings was evacuated on Saturday, with social media posts showing deep floodwater coming through the entrance.
On Sunday, a caravan park in Bognor Regis was also underwater with the town’s Tesco supermarket car park flooded.
The warnings arrive in the aftermath of Storm Babet, which flooded large parts of the UK and left some homes and businesses underwater. Seven people are known to have died, including three in Scotland.
The 19-year-old woman who died after she was attacked by a dog at a flat in Bristol on Wednesday has been named as Morgan Dorsett from Shropshire.
Two people – a man and a woman both aged in their 20s – have been arrested over the attack and have been released on conditional bail.
Initial reports suggested the dog may be an XL bully, but confirming the breed will form part of the police assessment process, according to Avon and Somerset Police.
It was sedated and seized by officers.
Image: An XL bully. File pic: PA
Ms Dorsett’s family thanked the public for their support and those who have left flowers near the scene.
Officers were called to an incident in the Hartcliffe area of Bristol at 7.19pm on Wednesday.
Paramedics and police officers attended but Ms Dorsett died at the scene.
Image: Ms Dorsett. Pic: Avon and Somerset Police
On Thursday, Inspector Terry Murphy said: “Our thoughts, first and foremost, are with the family of the young woman who’s tragically died as a result of yesterday evening’s incident. They have been updated and will be supported by a family liaison officer.
“I’d also like to thank the officers and paramedics who attended yesterday evening and tried to save her life. Support is in place for them.
“A full investigation is now well under way to establish the full circumstances of the events that led to her death.”
Bargain Hunt auctioneer Charles Hanson has been cleared of coercive control and assault allegations relating to his wife.
The 46-year-old was accused of being violent towards Rebecca Hanson over an eight-year period.
The charges were brought after he was arrested in June 2023.
The TV auctioneer, from Mackworth, Derby, denied controlling or coercive behaviour spanning from 2015 to 2023, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and assault by beating. The two assault charges related to incidents in 2015 and 2023.
During the trial, Hanson claimed his wife had controlled him. He told the court he was “almost a slave” to her, saying she left him “a beaten and broken man” by controlling him and making him subservient towards her.
She had claimed her husband was violent towards her and put her in a headlock in 2012, while she pregnant with a baby she later lost.
Mrs Hanson also alleged her husband repeatedly “grabbed” her, scratched her as she tried to snatch a mobile phone and pushed her twice during a row.
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Image: Hanson outside the court with his parents today. Pic: PA
The auctioneer told the court his wife was allowed “to do what she wanted” but had experienced “moments and episodes” including one which saw her claim his legs being crossed amounted to abuse.
Jurors deliberated for around four and a half hours before delivering not guilty verdicts on all charges.
As the verdicts were returned, Hanson smiled at his parents, who were sat in the front row of the public gallery at Derby Crown Court, and gave them a thumbs-up.
After thanking the jurors for their care in considering the case, Judge Martin Hurst told Hanson: “You have been found not guilty. That is the end of the case. You will hear no more about it and you are free to go.”
The TV star’s parents wept and hugged their son after he was discharged from the dock.
Hanson ‘relieved this is all over’
Image: Hanson speaks to media after the verdict. Pic: PA
Speaking to reporters outside the court, Hanson said: “I’m delighted that after a year and a half the truth has finally come out.
“I can finally live my life again. I feel this burden has finally been lifted.”
“It has been a tormentuous time and all I want now is to readjust to what has been such an ordeal,” he continued. “I am so relieved that this is all over.”
As well as regularly featuring on Bargain Hunt, Hanson has appeared on Flog It! and Antiques Road Trip.
A self-described “monster” who beat a top chef to death near Notting Hill Carnival has been jailed for life.
Omar Wilson repeatedly punched and kicked Mussie Imnetu during an altercation outside a restaurant in Queensway, west London,on 26 August last year.
Wilson, 31, then left the scene to go clubbing.
Mr Imnetu, 41, who worked under star chefs Gordon Ramsay and Marcus Wareing, died in hospital four days later, without regaining consciousness.
Image: Mussie Imnetu. Pic: Metropolitan Police
Sentencing Wilson to a minimum 18 years, Judge Philip Katz said Mr Imnetu’s “brutal” killing was “abhorrent”.
“Mussie and those who loved him are the victims in this case and the impact on them of his murder has been severe,” he said.
“Mussie was defenceless on the ground when you punched and kicked him to death.”
He continued: “You could not control your temper. Only a few seconds after punches were aimed by both of you you tripped Mussie and he fell to the ground and you could have walked away.
“As he knelt you rained further punches down on his head. You could have walked away.
“However, you stood up, raised your leg and kicked him hard to the head. Kicking someone to the head when they are defenceless on the ground is abhorrent.”
Image: CCTV footage of Omar Wilson at a security point after the assault. Pic: Metropolitan Police
Mr Imnetu’s wife, Linda, described her husband as “respected, admired and loved” in a pre-recorded victim impact statement played in court.
“Mussie didn’t just leave behind a legacy for his family, he left an indelible mark on his workplace and community,” she said.
“Nothing can undo what has been taken from us. I ask the court to remember the man Mussie was: his character, his integrity and the life he built; not just the circumstances of his passing.”
An audio recording of Mr Imnetu’s six-year-old son wishing his “daddy” goodbye was also played in court, which the judge called “heart-rending”.
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CCTV footage was played in court during the trial showing Wilson approaching Mr Imnetu and headbutting him.
Around a minute later, Wilson punched Mr Imnetu five times in the head, continued to repeatedly punch him while he was on his hands and knees, and then kicked him in the head.
Wilson of Napier Road, east London, told the Old Bailey he was acting in self defence, telling jurors: “I just regret that somebody’s life was taken while I was trying to defend mine.”
He claimed Mr Imnetu had a broken bottle – something Judge Katz described as “a deliberate lie”.
The court heard after the attack that Wilson had told an associate he “crossed the line”.
In a message, he said: “There’s a monster in me, man, and it’s just like sometimes it comes out.
“And I think I’ve messed up now, I’ve messed up, everything’s finished.”