Storm warning as forecast gales set to bring down trees

Storm strength gales of up to 75mph, combined with heavy rain, could topple trees and cause structural damage to buildings, they say.

The unseasonably hot summer and mild autumn has caused many trees to keep leaves on their branches far longer than usual.

Experts fear the larger amounts of foliage will act like sails and make trees much more vulnerable to damage in high winds.

The strong gales will hit the South West Coast at around 9pm this evening and will move north-eastwards across the Midlands, northern England and Wales, bringing heavy rain throughout the night and into Saturday.

Temperatures are likely to be just above the seasonal norm of 9 or 10C (48-50F) but the wind chill factor will make it feel a little colder.

Although the wind and rain will continue through much of Saturday, Sunday is likely to be a much calmer and slightly warmer day with temperatures in some parts topping 13C (55F).

John Hammond, forecaster at the Met Office, said: 'We're expecting very strong winds and severe gales with speeds of up to 75 miles per hour affecting England and Wales this Saturday.

"There's scope for damage to trees and falling debris, when a lot of people will be out and about doing their Christmas shopping and going to events.

"The leaves are still on the trees after our warm weather, and the wind catches the branches more easily because the leaves act like a sail, so they could cause more damage.'

This year's conditions bear a striking resemblance to those preceding the storms of 1987.

Then there was a long hot summer too, with the dry conditions leading to tree roots loosening their hold.

And sudden rain in October – as there has been this year – softened the soil.

The onset of 115mph gales then brought down 15million trees, killed up to 20 people and led to insurance claims totalling £1.4billion.

Mr Hammond said that like most other months so far this year, November was also likely to be one of the warmest on record.

'We are on course for one of the warmest years on record,' he said.

'This summer we had a record breaking September and July and the continuation of winds coming from the south and south-west off a warm Atlantic is keeping temperatures above average.

"At the moment we're seeing temperatures of 10 to 12C (50-54F), so it's certainly mild. The average maximum temperatures for this time of year would be around 9 or 10C (48-50F), so we're above that by a few degrees.

"We're expecting temperatures to peak at 12 or 13C (54-55F) in London and the south-east.

"Overall, temperatures so far this month have been above average for November over the whole of the UK. Parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland have also been above average by one or two degrees.

"We've had shorter cold spells and we should see a mild end to the month as these warm winds continue."

The warmest November day ever recorded was in Prestatyn, Wales, on the November 4 1946, when temperatures reached 21.7C (71F).