Strong storms set to hit the UK

97% of power cuts in last year's storms were caused by fallen trees

Gale-force winds reaching 80mph will hit northern and western parts of the UK on Thursday night, forecasters say.

The first storms of the autumn will last until Friday with Wales, southern Scotland and the west of England expected to be worst affected.

But forecasters say the gales are nothing unusual for this time of year and say there is no need to panic.

Storms last autumn caused power cuts to thousands of homes, forcing a government review into the chaos.

Disruption

BBC broadcast meteorologist Helen Willetts said the first storms of the autumn were always a "bit of shock" and that some disruption was inevitable.

"It's nothing unusual and we should expect these storms at this time of the year", she told BBC News Online.

"With the first ones of the year it's always a bit of a shock.

The distributors of power should have learnt their lesson from last October to have their contingency plans in order Energywatch

"We're talking about severe gales with the potential for storm-force winds. There will be disruption to transport with ferries and aeroplanes being affected and particularly the railways with debris falling on the lines.

"There could be structural damage with things like windows getting smashed and chimney pots blowing over. That's the sort of damage we're going to see."

On Thursday night the storms, which have been caused by a deep area of pressure, were moving quickly over south west Ireland and were expected to reach the north of England and Scotland during the night.

Meteorologists say heavy rain in some parts of the UK may led to localised flooding although a spokesman for the Environment Agency said no flood warnings had been issued.

The Automobile Association (AA) has advised motorists to delay non-essential journeys.

Spokesman Colin Hunter said: "A 60 mph gust creates four times the force of a 30mph wind and with rain spray and possible flooding to contend with driving could be very perilous."

He also warned drivers not to risk blowing their engines by driving too fast through water.

Power cuts

In the severe storms of last October, power firms were criticised for mass power cuts.

The government said some firms had responded very well but others were simply not up-to-scratch in their preparations.

Falling trees were responsible for 97% of the cuts.

Gas and electricity watchdog Energywatch told BBC News Online it hoped lessons had been learnt by power distributors in the wake of last October's storms.

A spokesperson said: "The distributors should have been very careful about looking at overhead power lines, seeing if there are any obstructions.

"We are also looking for them to have an effective communications network so that consumers know where is affected as well as how they can claim compensation."