A weather warning has been issued for the Hull and East Yorkshire area with the newly-named Storm Lilian set to bring winds of around 60mph or more to the region.
Though unseasonably blustery conditions are already widely affecting the area, after a period of calmer conditions later on, winds are expected to pick up again overnight into Friday and potentially be even stronger than today.
Gusts on Thursday have approached 50mph at times but are forecast to ease as the day goes on with bright spells, and perhaps the odd shower, through the day with temperatures reaching 20C. Cloud will spread in from the west later followed by rain, heavy at times, during the night. Gale force winds are set to return towards dawn.
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Friday will then begin on a very windy note with gusts pushing to around 60mph before losing strength later on in the day but staying quite blustery. It should be mostly dry, though, with temperatures peaking at 20C but feeling a few degrees cooler in the wind.
The Met Office says the worst of the winds could lead to damage to some buildings, such as tiles blown from roofs, while flying debris and, at the coast, large waves may lead to injuries and a "danger to life". There is also a chance of power cuts, impacts to mobile phone services, and a possibility of some roads and bridges closing. Road, rail, air and ferry services may be affected too.
In its yellow-level wind warning, which will be in place between 5am and 11am on Friday and covers our entire region, the Met Office says: "An area of strong winds associated with Storm Lilian is expected to move east across northern England during Friday morning.
"Whilst there remains some uncertainty about the details, some very strong winds are likely to develop, with gusts widely in the 50 to 60mph range, with a lower chance that a small core of winds gusting 65-75mph, perhaps 80mph, could push quickly east during the morning. These winds are likely to affect major routes such as the M6, A66 and A1(M), as well as potentially impacting infrastructure.
"As well as the strong winds, some locally heavy rainfall will add to the difficult travel conditions."
Met Office chief meteorologist Jason Kelly said: “Storm Lilian will bring some potentially damaging gusts during Friday morning, with gusts widely in the 50-60mph range, with the possibility of some gusts in excess of 75mph in a few places.
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“There’s associated rainfall with Lilian that has also resulted in a Met Office warning for parts of Scotland. Within the warning area, another 50mm of rain is possible over high ground, with 20-30mm falling quite widely. Much of this is falling on saturated ground so increases the chance of some surface water flooding.”
In our area, a travel advisory was issued by the Humber Bridge Board earlier this week. Posting on social media, they said: "We are working closely with our Weather Forecast Service to monitor the situation and will take the appropriate action if we feel there is a risk i.e. speed restrictions, closing the bridge to high-sided and wind vulnerable vehicles, or closing the footpaths.
"If you are planning on crossing the bridge over next few days please check the latest traffic and travel info (including footpaths) on our website http://humberbridge.co.uk and be prepared to add extra time to your journey/find alternative means of transport."
