STORM GERTRUDE has arrived, with electricity outages as strong winds blowing across Britain and Ireland.
The Met offices in both countries have issued national warnings, as winds of up to 100mph hit parts of both islands.
Gertrude is the seventh 'named' storm to hit since the naming system was introduced late last year. So far storms named Abigal, Barney, Clodagh and Des have been recorded.
There are currently thousands of homes without power in the North of Ireland and Scotland, while southern parts have so far escaped relatively unscathed.
Met Éireann has issued a status yellow weather warning ahead of the weekend as the storm gains momentum.
One of Ireland's best-known tourist spots was badly hit by Gertrude, when three of Co. Antrim's Dark Hedges blew over in strong winds.
Dark night for the Dark Hedges. 3 trees blown over #StormGertrude #GoT pic.twitter.com/emTDbgi9eM
— I ♥ North Coast (@ILoveNorthCoast) January 29, 2016
Several warnings have also been issued across Britain.
A code red – the most severe warning issued – is in place in the Orkney and Shetland islands off the Northern Scottish coast, where winds peaked at 100mph this morning already.
Gusts of 90mph swept across the islands this morning as the locals were advised to “take immediate action” to ensure their safety by the Met Office.
The less severe code orange warning is effecting Scotland and parts of Northern England – while a code yellow is in place for southern parts.
Winds of 70mph have brought down trees in the North of Ireland and left at least 5,000 without electricity today – as well as a further 10,000 in the Republic, with the west particularly badly hit.
The Met Office shared this video of the storm's movement earlier today.
Latest satellite animation showing #StormGertrude which will bring winds of up to 100mph for Shetland https://t.co/hszDWKZSPy — Met Office (@metoffice) January 29, 2016
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