Storm Éowyn is likely to cause severe disruption to rail services across northern England, a train operator has warned. Wherever possible, Northern Rail has advised passengers not to travel on Friday, stressing "trains may be cancelled at very short notice with onward connection not possible".

Storm Éowyn is gathering strength, supercharged by the Arctic blast that moved through the US, and has the potential to trigger power outages and travel disruptions across the UK later this week.

With Storm Éowyn threatening to unleash severe gales forecasters have warned lives could be risk. Numerous weather warnings have been issued by the Met Office including an amber wind warning for parts of north Wales on Friday with gusts of up to 90mph (145km/h) in coastal areas.