A stormy start to 2025 for Britain saw dozens of flights cancelled, a ‘do not travel’ rail warning imposed and London‘s New Year’s Day Parade delayed due to strong winds.
The annual parade through London was due to begin at midday today, but is set to start 30 minutes later than planned and inflatable cartoon characters will not be inflated after advice from the Met Office, according to show spokesman Dan Kirkby.
Meanwhile 36 flights to and from Heathrow Airport were cancelled this morning, including 28 British Airways services which the airline said was because of ‘air traffic control restrictions across London airports due to adverse weather conditions’.
BA flights linking Heathrow with destinations such as Barcelona, Copenhagen and Nice were among those axed, as well as two round-trips to Milan. Other carriers to cancel flights at Europe’s busiest airport were Lufthansa, Swiss and Air France.
The stormy weather also caused chaos across the UK rail network with multiple disruptions and rail passengers in northern England told: ‘Do not travel’.
TransPennine Express, which runs trains in northern England and southern Scotland said ‘persistent heavy rain’ had flooded several routes, primarily in the North West.
The operator said the deluge caused ‘significant issues in Greater Manchester and Cheshire’, with travellers advised to ‘delay journeys at least until the afternoon’.
It comes as Met Office wind, rain and snow warnings are in force for parts of the UK, with flooding bringing disruption to many of those travelling on New Year’s Day.
Members of Ocean Springs High School Marching Band from Mississippi shiver in the wind this morning as they prepare for the annual London New Year’s Day Parade which was delayed
Waves crashing into Dover in Kent today as wind, rain and snow warnings are in force
Stranded cars on a flooeded Shaftsbury Avenue in Timperley, South Manchester, this morning
Large parts of England and Wales will be hit by strong winds until 3pm today, while north-west England and Wales will endure heavy rain for much of the morning.
More than 130 flood warnings, meaning flooding is expected, are in place for England, 10 for Wales and 32 for Scotland.
Over the last 48 hours, some parts of the North West of England saw almost a month’s worth of rain, Met Office meteorologist Tom Morgan said.
Honister Pass in Cumbria saw nearly 6in (150mm) of rain, while Rochdale in Greater Manchester had 3in (77mm).
Mr Morgan said: ‘There’s still probably likely to be further flooding across the course of the day, I’m expecting further issues this afternoon. We are potentially expecting the flood situation to get worse before it gets better.’
The yellow wind warning means there is a chance of delays or cancellations to road, rail, air and ferry services as winds of up to 60mph are forecast across much of England and Wales, with gusts of 75mph likely around coastal areas and hills, according to the Met Office.
And a yellow warning for snow and ice is in force for northern Scotland until 9am tomorrow, as rain turning to snow is likely to lead to some travel disruption and difficult driving conditions on New Year’s Day, the forecaster added.
It comes after Edinburgh’s Hogmanay celebrations, including street parties and fireworks, were cancelled due to safety concerns.
Wet and windy weather ahead of London’s New Year’s Day Parade 2025 this morning
A tree surgeon inspecting a fallen tree on Showell Lane in Meriden, Coventry, this morning
Cars stuck on a flooded road in Manchester this morning following torrential rain
Wet and windy weather ahead of London’s New Year’s Day Parade 2025 this morning
Waves crash against the harbour wall at the Port of Dover in Kent this morning
Swimmers brave bad weather for the St Andrews New Year Dook at East Sands this morning
Stranded cars on a flooded Shaftsbury Avenue in Timperley, South Manchester, this morning
Cars trapped in flood water on the A555 near Wilmslow in Cheshire this morning
Wet and windy weather ahead of London’s New Year’s Day Parade 2025 this morning
Swimmers brave bad weather for the St Andrews New Year Dook at East Sands this morning
A tree surgeon inspecting a fallen tree on Showell Lane in Meriden, Coventry, this morning
Cars stuck on a flooded road in Manchester this morning following torrential rain
People walking on the beach at Barry Island in the Vale of Glamorgan in South Wales today
Wet and windy weather ahead of London’s New Year’s Day Parade 2025 this morning
Stranded cars on a flooded Shaftsbury Avenue in Timperley, South Manchester, this morning
Waves crashing into Dover in Kent today as wind, rain and snow warnings are in force
Cars stranded in deep water due to flooding at Stockport in Greater Manchester today
Swimmers brave bad weather for the St Andrews New Year Dook at East Sands this morning
Firework displays in Blackpool, Newcastle, Ripon in North Yorkshire, and the Isle of Wight were also axed.
However, London’s New Year’s Eve fireworks event went ahead as planned.
Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service said it had been experiencing a high number of 999 calls due to flooding.
TransPennine Express urged customers not to travel before noon today, with the rail line closed between Manchester Piccadilly and Warrington Central.
Disruption is also expected for trains between Manchester Airport and the city’s stations, as well as routes between Manchester and Liverpool Lime Street.
Trains between Liverpool and Newcastle, Hull and Sheffield were being affected by flooding, as well as lines between Manchester Airport and Redcar Central, Manchester Victoria and Scarborough, and Manchester Piccadilly and York.
Services running between Manchester Piccadilly and Preston were also being disrupted due to flooding, which Network Rail said would disrupt services running between Manchester Piccadilly and Glasgow Central/Edinburgh.
Meanwhile a spokesperson for BA said: ‘We operate hundreds of flights every day without disruption, successfully getting tens of thousands of our customers to where they need to be.
‘Like other airlines, we’ve had to make some small adjustments to our schedule today because of air traffic control restrictions across London airports due to adverse weather conditions.
A ferry heads out to sea in Dover today as wind, rain and snow warnings are in force
Wet and windy weather ahead of London’s New Year’s Day Parade 2025 this morning
People walking on the beach at Barry Island in the Vale of Glamorgan in South Wales today
Stranded cars on a flooded Shaftsbury Avenue in Timperley, South Manchester, this morning
Swimmers brave bad weather for the St Andrews New Year Dook at East Sands this morning
Cars trapped in flood water on the A555 near Wilmslow in Cheshire this morning
Swimmers brave bad weather for the St Andrews New Year Dook at East Sands this morning
A ferry heads out to sea in Dover today as wind, rain and snow warnings are in force
People walking on the beach at Barry Island in the Vale of Glamorgan in South Wales today
A tree surgeon inspecting a fallen tree on Showell Lane in Meriden, Coventry, this morning
Swimmers brave bad weather for the St Andrews New Year Dook at East Sands this morning
Cars stuck on a flooded road in Manchester this morning following torrential rain
Swimmers brave bad weather for the St Andrews New Year Dook at East Sands this morning
Stranded cars on a flooded Shaftsbury Avenue in Timperley, South Manchester, this morning
Swimmers brave bad weather for the St Andrews New Year Dook at East Sands this morning
‘While the vast majority of our customers will be unaffected, we apologise for the inconvenience caused and our teams are working hard to help get their journeys back on track.’
National Highways said the westbound M56 between Junction 6 for Manchester Airport and Junction 7 for Bowdon was expected to be closed ‘for some time’ due to flooding across all three lanes.
The UK Health Security Agency activated a 72-hour ‘cold health alert’ at 9am today, running until 9am on January 4.
The M57 in Merseyside was closed in both directions between Junction 6 for Kirkby and Junction 7 for Switch Island, Aintree, due to flooding and the work to clear the water is expected to take some time.
And a section of the A628 Woodhead Pass between Woolley Bridge and Flouch was closed in both directions.
Other parts of the country were also seeing disruption with the M48 Severn Bridge closed in both directions due to high winds.
London’s New Year’s Day Parade was due to begin at midday, but is set to start 30 minutes later than planned, and inflatable cartoon characters will not be inflated after Met Office advice
Train operator TransPennine Express urged customers not to travel before noon today
In Wales, Network Rail said the Conwy Valley Line between Blaenau Ffestiniog and Llandudno Junction would be closed throughout New Year’s Day because of fallen trees on the line and an assessment of the embankment.
The Far North Line in the Scottish Highlands was temporarily closed, while rail services between Dingwall and Inverness were halted due to flooding.
Met Office forecaster Mr Morgan said there is expected to be widespread frost overnight, followed by a ‘particularly cold’ couple of days, with the potential for widespread snow and disruption into the weekend.
Temperatures are set to be between 3C and 5C below average by day over the next few days, with a maximum of 5C to 6C in the south, and the coldest spots expected to see -10C during the nights.
The UK Health Security Agency activated a 72-hour ‘cold health alert’ at 9am today, running until 9am on January 4.
