Fierce winds from Storm Eunice toppled trees and sent debris flying, causing the deaths of a woman in her 30s in London, a man in his 20s in Hampshire, and a man in his 50s in Merseyside. Five people died elsewhere in Europe, while the storm closed schools, disrupted travel, tore off roofs and left tens of thousands without power. A 122mph gust on the Isle of Wight set a provisional record in England.
Coastal areas of southwest England and south Wales, along with southeast England, had been on alert after rare red weather warnings were issued by the Met Office early on Friday, indicating a danger to life.
There are several less-serious yellow warnings in place across Scotland, Northern Ireland and parts of northern England – because of concerns about wind, snow and ice. Police in Highgate, north London, said they were called to report a tree falling on a car at 16:00 GMT. The woman, a passenger, was pronounced dead at the scene, while the driver, a man in his 30s, was taken to hospital.
The man killed in Merseyside was a passenger in a car heading towards Aintree at about 14:10 when debris reportedly hit the windscreen, police said. Paramedics treated him at the scene, but he was pronounced dead. The driver was not injured. In Alton, Hampshire, two men were in a pickup truck when it was crushed by a falling tree. The passenger was pronounced dead at the scene while the driver was taken to hospital with serious injuries.
