North East warned to brace itself for tail end of Hurricane Ophelia
Gusts of up to 80mph will batter the UK and Ireland as Hurricane Ophelia sweeps in threatening to cause travel chaos.
The Met Office has issued severe weather alerts, warning of potential power cuts, flying debris and disruption to transport and mobile phone signal.
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Hide AdThe tropical storm has been making its way across the Atlantic, and Ophelia's remnants are set to reach these shores on Monday, resulting in "exceptional" weather.
Northern Ireland is covered with an amber warning - meaning there is a "potential risk to life and property".
Yellow warnings are in place for the North East, North West, South West, West Midlands, and much of Wales and Scotland.
The Met Office warned the public to expect "very windy weather" in the North East from about lunchtime on Monday until mid-afternoon on Tuesday.
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Hide AdGusts are expected to pick up at about teatime and approach 50mph at times through the night and into Tuesday morning, before eventually subsiding.
The warning said: "Road, rail, air and ferry services may be affected, with longer journeys times and cancellations possible.
"Power cuts may occur, with the potential to affect other services, such as mobile phone coverage.
"Some damage to buildings, such as tiles blown from roofs could happen, perhaps leading to injuries and danger to life from flying debris.
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Hide Ad"Coastal routes, sea fronts and coastal communities may be affected by spray and/or large waves."
Bookmaker Coral has cut the odds on this month being the wettest October on record in the UK to evens (from 3-1) following a flurry of bets this morning.
The firm is offering 6-4 that the wind speed reaches as high as 100mph in mainland UK next week and 2-1 for there to be snowfall in October.