UK weather forecast: Flight delays and power blackouts expected from Storm Barney

Power outages, flight delays, and coastal flooding have been forecast across the UK as Storm Barney is set to bring more heavy rain and wind to the UK on 17 November.

Barney is the second storm to be named by the Met Office this season, just one week after Storm Abigail battered British towns.

The Met Office has warned of gale-force winds up to 80mph in southern England and Wales on Tuesday, while the north-west of England is due to experience another round of heavy rain. A yellow warning for wind was issued in London as "Barney" began trending on Twitter on Tuesday morning.

A spokesperson for the Met Office said: "Be aware of the risk of disruption to travel and that gusts of this strength could bring down trees and lead to some damage to weakened structures."

The hardest hit regions are expected to be Cardiff, Plymouth and Bristol, with gusts of at least 75mph, while winds in Greater London could reach up to 50mph. Warnings of possible flight delays at Heathrow and Gatwick airports have been issued.

Storm Barney heads towards the UK just days after Storm Abigail and the remnants of Hurricane Kate left many parts of the country with severe flooding. The Environment Agency said that its flood schemes protected more than 20,000 homes over the weekend, and more than 600m of temporary flood defences were put in place.

Barney is expected to worsen the damage caused by heavy rain in Wales, Cumbria and north-east England last week, when riverbanks burst and flooded farmland and train tracks. Homes were also left without power and schools were closed in some parts of Scotland, which has prompted people to wonder whether we will witness the same this week.

"Barney will be a fast-moving storm, bringing locally strong winds to southern Ireland the southern UK beginning midday Tuesday and continuing into Tuesday night," said AccuWeather meteorologist Eric Leister.

While Storm Barney is expected to move away from the UK on Tuesday night, the rest of the week will continue to bring unsettled weather. The Met Office has also warned that snow will hit the country by the weekend as temperatures fall to nearly 0C in some regions.

Parts of Scotland and the north of England are expected to receive snowfall on higher ground by 20 November, with the possibility of snow making its way to lower ground later in the weekend.

While there is no snow predicted for the south, forecasters have said that areas around London could see some sleet as night temperatures fall to as low as 1C on 21 November. The cold conditions could be the first glimpse of the "big freeze" that has been predicted for this winter.