Storm Chandra latest: ‘Danger to life’ flood warning and travel chaos as Met Office issues UK weather alerts

Rail passengers face problems during morning rush hour in England, Wales and Scotland. The West Coast Main Line is closed between Wilmslow and Crewe in Cheshire due to a “power outage and a tree blocking the track”, according to National Rail.

Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry and Northern trains will be affected. Several lines in southern England were blocked, including routes between:

• Romsey and Salisbury
• Weymouth and Dorchester
• Axminster and Honiton
• Exeter and Barnstaple/Okehampton

There are speed restrictions between Exeter and Newton Abbot. In Wales, the “Heart of Wales” line from Swansea to Shrewsbury is closed due to a fallen tree.

ScotRail said speed restrictions were in place on the West Highland line connecting Glasgow to Oban and Fort William.

Scottish regional airline Loganair canceled at least 12 flights on Tuesday.

Affected routes include Manchester to Newquay and the Isle of Man, Liverpool to John Lennon to the Isle of Man and Glasgow to Islay, Campbeltown and Tiree.

At least 30 flights were canceled at Belfast City Airport on Tuesday.

Approximately 15 departures and 15 arrivals scheduled to serve the airport were canceled.

The airlines affected were Aer Lingus, Aer Lingus Regional and British Airways.

All canceled flights were on domestic routes serving the following airports: Birmingham, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Heathrow, Leeds Bradford, London City, Manchester and Southampton.

Night services to and from Liverpool and Belfast on the Stena Line have been cancelled. The morning voyage from Belfast to Liverpool will also operate at the port.

Nearly all services from Cairnryan in the north of the Irish Sea to Larne and Belfast, from Fishguard and Pembroke to connections south to Rosslare, have been canceled until the afternoon, with most subsequent departures “doubtful”.

In Scotland, Caledonian MacBrayne canceled all departures from Oban to Mull and onwards to Iona, Oban to Barra, Coll and Tiree, Ullapool to Stornoway and many other departures.

Flights of thousands of passengers were canceled due to Storm Chandra. The hardest hit airport was Belfast City, which is in the middle of the area affected by the Met Office’s high wind warning.

At least 27 flights across the Irish Sea to Great Britain have been cancelled: 18 Aer Lingus Regional connections to various British airports, as well as nine British Airways arrivals and departures serving London.

Scottish airline Loganair has canceled a dozen flights, including connections from Manchester to Newquay, Manchester and Liverpool to the Isle of Man, and Glasgow to Campbeltown, Islay and Tiree.

Under air passenger rights rules, passengers whose flights have been canceled have the right to be flown to their destination with any airline as quickly as possible and to be provided with meals and hotels until they arrive.

Chris Wilding, Flood Duty Manager at the Environment Agency, said: “Due to the arrival of Storm Chandra, significant surface flooding impacts are possible across the south-west of England today and tomorrow, with a risk of significant river flood impacts tomorrow.

“Elsewhere, impacts are possible in the north, south and south-east of England tomorrow.

“Environment Agency teams are taking action to reduce the impact of flooding and support affected communities. We urge people not to drive through floodwater; water is often deeper than it looks and just 30cm of flowing water is enough to float your car.”

A severe flood warning has been issued for the Otter River (Lower) at Ottery St Mary in Devon, meaning it could be life-threatening.

More than 100 flood warnings have been issued across the UK in preparation for Storm Chandra, while a further 193 less severe flood warnings have been issued.

They are scattered across England and near the Welsh border, with several warnings in place in the south of the country.

National Highways said the A66 was closed due to snow between the A67 near Bowes in County Durham and the A685 near Brough in Cumbria.

Motorists traveling in the Pennines are advised to “plan ahead and consider alternative routes”.