BBC Weather: Matt Taylor forecasts heavy rain for UK
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The UK will be hit with high winds and blustery showers on Friday as Hurricane Ian pushes the Atlantic jet stream across from the US. The storm swept through Cuba before wreaking havoc in Florida, with authorities yet to take stock of the extent of fatalities and damage.
So far, over 2.6 million power outages have been registered, and US President Joe Biden said the death toll from the hurricane is “still unclear”.
He then added: “But we're hearing early reports of what may be substantial loss of life."
The US leader said Hurricane Ian “could be the deadliest hurricane in Florida’s history”.
The hurricane is now en route back towards land, expected to hit the US once again by mid-afternoon.
Georgia and the states of North and South Carolina are thought to be next to bear the brunt of the category four storm on Friday.
Across the pond, the Met Office currently has two weather warnings in place for the UK on Friday.
“Very windy weather” is expected to hit the west and northern islands of Scotland ahead of the weekend, the forecaster said.
This will likely spark some delays to travel across land, air and sea.
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Large waves will be a danger on the coastlines under the yellow weather warning for wind, which began at 8am on Friday.
A separate yellow warning for rain is in force across central and western Scotland, covering Fort William, Stirling and Dumfries.
Spray and flooding across road networks are likely to slow down journeys, the weather forecaster said, as heavy rain increases the chance of disruption.
Gusts of 94mph were recorded in the Scottish Highlands on Friday morning, with the wet and windy conditions lasting throughout the early part of the weekend.
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But although the jet stream is impacted by Hurricane Ian, the weather conditions in the UK are "not comparable" to the devastation being seen in the US.
Chief Meteorologist Paul Gundersen said: “A spell of strong winds and heavy rain will push southeast throughout the day.
“The strongest winds are likely to be in northern Scotland, with gusts of 65 to 70 mph in coastal parts and perhaps 75 mph around the Northern Isles.
“As well as strong winds a band of heavy rain will affect many areas of the country, however rainfall totals are expected to build in western parts of Scotland, up to 40mm in one or two places.”
Earlier this week, the UK was warned it would experience “severe gales” of up to 55mph and some of its “heaviest and strongest winds” so far since the summer.
Temperatures are likely to stay in the low to mid teens across the south, reaching 14C with lows of 6C in parts of Scotland on Friday.
