Britain and Ireland are bracing themselves for a ferocious blast of autumn weather as Storm Amy, the first named storm of the 2025-2026 season, barrels across the region. With official warnings in place from the Met Office and Met Éireann, residents from Scotland and Northern Ireland to the far reaches of Wales and the Republic of Ireland are preparing for what could be the most severe storm in recent years. The storm is forecast to hit on Friday, October 3, 2025, and bring with it torrential rain, hurricane-force winds, and widespread disruption to travel and daily life.
According to the BBC, Storm Amy is expected to arrive in the UK on Friday afternoon, unleashing wind gusts of 60-70 mph widely and potentially exceeding 95 mph in exposed areas. The Met Office has issued amber wind warnings for much of Northern Ireland from 3pm to 8pm and for regions including Grampian, the Highlands and Western Isles, Orkney and Shetland, and Strathclyde from 5pm on Friday until 9am Saturday. Yellow warnings for both rain and wind stretch across Northern Ireland, Scotland, northern England, and Wales, underscoring the storm’s broad reach and potential for chaos.
Experts are sounding the alarm that Storm Amy could become what’s known as a “weather bomb”—a storm that intensifies rapidly, bringing sudden, violent winds and heavy rainfall. The Met Office cautioned that such conditions could lead to “roofs being blown off houses and power lines brought down,” with the risk of “injuries and danger to life” particularly high along the coast, where large waves and flying debris may threaten roads, beach fronts, and even homes.
Stephen Dixon, a Met Office spokesman, laid out the risks: “The impact we will start feeling from Storm Amy will be from Friday afternoon and into the early hours of Saturday, and the most significant impacts that we’re expecting are highlighted by the amber wind warning area that covers much of western Scotland and northern Scotland. Within that warning area you could see gusts in excess of 95 miles per hour in the more exposed areas, but wind gusts between 60 and 70 fairly widely, which obviously has the potential to bring some disruption for many. The warning itself highlights the possibility of power cuts or damage to buildings, difficult travel conditions as well, so certainly an impactful autumn storm on the way, particularly in Scotland.”
Across the Irish Sea, Met Éireann meteorologist Ailis Hankinson echoed the sense of urgency. She told RTÉ: “It is the first storm of the season so it’s essential to be prepared for potential impacts caused by the strong winds and the rain. There could be difficult travelling conditions, loose objects or flying debris.”
Several counties in Ireland are under an orange-level weather warning, while all counties are expected to experience yellow-level warnings at some point between Thursday and Friday. Met Éireann has also issued a red warning—the highest possible—for coastal waters between Fairhead (Antrim) and Loop Head (Clare), with orange wind warnings for counties Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, and Sligo. Yellow warnings for rain are in effect for counties Galway and Kerry, highlighting the storm’s potential to cause flooding and hazardous driving conditions throughout the island.
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) has been vocal about the dangers posed by Storm Amy, particularly near the coast and along inland waterways. Linda-Gene Byrne, the organization’s head of safety, warned, “Your safety is paramount so absolutely don’t take a chance with these warnings in place. Just keep your distance away from any of the water so you don’t end up getting knocked off your feet potentially or washed out. It’s better to be safe than sorry.” The RNLI stressed that strong gusts “pose a significant risk to safety” and urged the public to “exercise extreme caution, particularly along exposed cliffs, seafronts, piers and waterside paths.”
In Northern Ireland, the Met Office’s amber wind warning specifically affects counties Antrim, Londonderry, Tyrone, and Fermanagh from 3pm to 8pm on Friday, with wind gusts of 60-70 mph inland and up to 80 mph along exposed coasts. Yellow wind warnings cover eastern counties, while yellow rain warnings are in place across the region. The strong winds are expected to bring down trees and cause large waves in coastal areas, with a slight chance of damage to buildings such as tiles being blown from roofs. Delays and cancellations are anticipated across road, rail, air, and ferry services, and there is a chance of power cuts that could also impact mobile phone coverage.
Local authorities are taking no chances. NI Water has announced the closure of Silent Valley Mountain Park in Kilkeel, County Down, from 2pm on Friday, with a safety inspection scheduled for Saturday to determine when it can reopen. The Department for Infrastructure reported that Whitebridge Road in Ballygawley was closed due to river flooding after heavy rainfall, underscoring the storm’s potential to disrupt daily life even before its full arrival.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has also warned of hazardous driving conditions, citing “reduced visibility and standing water on roads throughout Northern Ireland.” They advised drivers to “slow down and increase your stopping distance from the vehicle in front. Exercise caution, even on short journeys in well-lit areas.” Chief Superintendent Scott McCarren, head of road policing at Police Scotland, added, “I would encourage people to drive to the conditions and be aware of increased stopping distances. In wet weather, stopping distances will be at least double those required for stopping on dry roads. Drivers of vehicles vulnerable to being blown over should plan their route to avoid exposed areas or consider cancelling your journey until conditions improve.”
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN), the distribution network operator for the north of Scotland, has prepared hundreds of additional staff to respond to faults during the storm. Nik Wheeler, SSEN’s head of customer operations for the north of Scotland, explained, “Our enlarged teams will be working throughout the weekend to do everything we can to minimise disruption. The forecast gales are some of the most severe and sustained we’ve seen in recent years, and storm-force winds of this prolonged nature can pose challenges when it comes to fixing faults, as we can only work at height when conditions become safe for us to do so.”
In a final note of caution, Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop advised, “Storm Amy is the first named storm of the new season, and the Met Office is warning us to expect heavy rain and strong winds across the whole of the country over the next few days, particularly in parts of the north and west of Scotland covered by the amber warning. Motorists will face difficult driving conditions, so it’s vital people plan ahead if they have to travel to see if their route is impacted by the weather. Travellers should check the latest information before they set off, drive to the conditions and follow Police Scotland travel advice. The conditions are likely to lead to disruption on other modes of transport too, so we are urging people planning to travel on trains, ferries and flights to contact their operators to find out if their service is affected.”
As Storm Amy approaches, the message from authorities is clear: stay alert, stay safe, and don’t underestimate the power of nature’s first major storm of the season.
