Met Office issues NEW weather warning as Storm Darragh batters UK

Forecasters have issued a yellow weather warning for the north west as Storm Darragh continues to batter the UK. Strong winds and heavy rain have been causing havoc across the country with numerous events cancelled, flights diverted and some road closures.

In the latest announcement by the Met Office, our region is likely to be hit with strong winds, prompting a new weather warning. The new warning runs from 6am until 6pm on Sunday and warns of very strong winds with widespread gales and heavy rain.

READ MORE: Storm Darragh LIVE updates as Met Office maps show latest weather and Everton vs Liverpool OFF

The warning covers almost the entire of England and Wales The Met Office says people should expect 'strong winds' which should gradually ease into Sunday, December 8.

"Storm Darragh will be moving away from the UK through Sunday but will continue to leave a legacy of strong north to northeasterly winds across much of England and Wales," the Met Office says.

"Winds will quite widely gust to 35-45 mph inland but locally could gust in excess of 50 mph, especially over higher ground. Around coasts, winds will gust to 50-60 mph, perhaps locally nearer 70 mph during the morning. The wind may cause disruption to travel, with difficult driving conditions likely. Winds will very slowly ease from the north through the day."

They have said to expect that some bus and train services affected, with some journeys taking longer; some delays to road, rail, air and ferry transport expected; and some short term loss of power and other services.

On Saturday in Greater Manchester, the weather will remain overcast with winds likely to reach speeds just below 60mph for the rest of the afternoon into the evening, the Met Office says.

It comes as eight warnings remain in force on Saturday. An amber warning of wind covering much of the west coast runs until 9pm on Saturday, with 'potentially damaging winds' forecast, with a separate amber warning covering Northern Ireland. Yellow warnings of wind are also in place across all of England and southern Scotland, alongside yellow weather warnings of rain in the north east. All are in place for the remainder of Saturday.