Storm Ophelia will see winds hit up to 55mph in Suffolk and north Essex

Storm Ophelia has reached the British shores today and could see winds hit up to 55mph in Suffolk and north Essex by the end of the week.

The news comes exactly 30 years after the devastation of the Great Storm of 1987 that killed 18 people in the UK and four in France.

Adam Dury, forecaster for Weatherquest, said: “The main force of Ophelia will be hitting Northern Ireland and then moving up past Wales and Scotland. Across Suffolk and north Essex the maximum gust we will see is between 35-40mph, but that should die down later tonight.

“It will be a windy day tomorrow but mostly dry, however there could be some patchy rain reaching the region tomorrow evening. Most days will stay dry but there might be some patchy rain on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, settling down as the day goes on. On Thursday and Friday, there will be some more gustily winds that could hit between 35-40mph again. On the weekend its expected that a deep low pressure might sweep the region and on Saturday we could be expecting some slightly more gusty winds, which could reach speeds between 50-55mph.

“Today, our region has had temperatures reaching 22-23C due to the hurricane bringing up warm air from the south. On Tuesday it will be between 15-16C, Wednesday and Thursday will rise again to between 16-17C. But, the rest of the week will be between 14-15C - the average temperature for this time of year.”

The Met Office released an amber weather warning for Northern Ireland who will see the brute force of Ophelia, as well as south-west Scotland and Wales, chief forecaster Paul Gunderson explained that there is a risk to loss of life and that its best for people to stay indoors.

There are also yellow weather warnings in place for the north east England, north west England, south west England, the West Midlands and much of Scotland and Wales.

Watch the Met Office’s videos about progression of Storm Ophelia.