Storm Babet news LIVE: UK weather latest as London stations flood, six inches of rain falls, Scottish towns are evacuated and woman, 57, is swept to her death

Council warns of 'very serious emergency'

Angus Council has issued an urgent update on Storm Babet, saying the area is ‘in the middle of a very serious emergency’ and the ‘flooding is unprecedented’.

The local authority said in a post on Facebook: ‘DO NOT TRAVEL! If you think you have an appointment, you don’t! If you REALLY think you need to get to work, check with your boss. If you’re a boss, PLEASE consider your employees and the need for them to attend work.’

Humza Yousaf says 'situation will worsen'

First Minister Humza Yousaf has issued a warning that the ‘situation will worsen as rainfall continues’ and said conditions were particularly dangerous in Brechin:

Five severe flood warnings for Scotland

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) has now issued five severe flood warnings – including a new one for Kinnaird/Bridge of Don north of Aberdeen.

It has warned that river levels could reach an ‘unprecedented’ five metres above normal levels.

Sepa added that the villages of Logie Mill and Craigo to places at risk of severe flooding in Angus, as well as Brechin and nearby Finavon and Tannadice, while the village of Marykirk in Aberdeenshire was put on high alert.

South Esk is at defences' maximum capacity

Water monitoring data for the South Esk at Brechin shows it is currently at 3.8m – the flood defences’ maximum capacity. Here is a graphic showing the level from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa):

TV's Laura Tobin reveals latest forecast

Laura Tobin, the meteorologist on ITV’s Good Morning Britain, has brought this latest update as Storm Babet continues to cause havoc with heavy rain and strong winds:

Video shows flooding in evacuated Brechin

A video filmed in Brechin, Angus, appears to show the river has spilled over defences overnight and is now causing major flooding.

It comes after efforts were made to convince residents of Brechin to evacuate 400 homes, with the coastguard and fire crews going door-to-door after some people refused to leave.

Humber Bridge shut to 'high-sided vehicles'

National Highways says the A15 Humber Bridge between North Lincolnshire and East Yorkshire has been closed in both directions to ‘high-sided and vulnerable vehicles’ due to strong winds. Diversion routes have been created.

ScotRail confirms trains remain suspended

ScotRail said train services remain suspended on several routes in north and north-east Scotland.

They are suspended between Aberdeen and Elgin; Edinburgh and Aberdeen via Fife; Perth and Aberdeen via Dundee; Dunblane and Perth; Perth and Aviemore; and Tain and Wick/Thurso.

All Fife Circle services are also suspended, impacting services between Glasgow Queen Street and Aberdeen/Inverness; and Edinburgh Waverley and Aberdeen/Inverness.

Storm Babet roads travel update

Several sections of major Scottish roads are closed due to Storm Babet. Traffic Scotland said these road sections are closed:

Drivers were advised to take care when crossing several bridges, including:

Scottish river TRIPLES in height in 12 hours

A river in Perth and Kinross tripled in height in 12 hours, according to realtime data from RiverTrack.

Alyth Burn, Alyth, Perth and Kinross, rose to 1447mm by 12.09am. At 8.09am on Thursday, it measured 413mm.

A rescue centre was set up at Alyth for people to go if they needed to seek refuge.

The A90 was closed between Dundee and Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire, due to the Sepa flood warning.

Flooding on roads in Greenwich today

Flooding is also affecting motorists on the other side of the capital at Greenwich this morning, where vehicles have been photographed creating a large splash:

Flooding begins to affect roads in London

Flooding has started to affect parts of London overnight, with vehicles photographed ploughing through floodwater at Brent Cross this morning:

Rail services hit by flooding in Yorkshire

Flooding is also affecting Northern rail services between Sheffield and Lincoln as well as between Leeds and Harrogate this morning:

Breaking: Flooding at Swindon blocks trains

Away from Scotland, Great Western Railway (GWR) has revealed that lines are blocked due to heavy rain flooding the railway at Swindon in Wiltshire.

Train services between London Paddington and Bristol Temple Meads may be cancelled, delayed or diverted until 10am.

Storm Babet latest rail travel news

Train lines between Edinburgh, Inverness and Aberdeen are being badly affected by severe weather, and ScotRail has confirmed these routes are suspended:

The following issues have also been reported in Scotland:

Caledonian Sleeper said services tonight between Aberdeen / Fort William / Inverness and London Euston (in both directions) have been cancelled. Services between Glasgow / Edinburgh and London Euston are set to be running as scheduled but may arrive later than planned due to speed restrictions.

CrossCountry said services will terminate at Edinburgh, not running north towards Aberdeen or west towards Glasgow Central. No alternative transport is available. Delays are expected between Newcastle and Edinburgh due to speed restrictions.

LNER said there will be no services operating north of Edinburgh today, and a ‘do not travel’ message is in place for this part of the route.

20,000 homes lose power during Storm Babet

More than 20,000 homes lost power during Storm Babet, according to Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN), predominantly in Aberdeenshire and Angus.

By 9pm last night, SSEN said it had restored services to almost 18,500 homes. We await a further update this morning.

Is Storm Babet a record-breaker for rain?

The Met Office says the highest amount of rainfall recorded since the start of yesterday has been 164mm (6.4in) at Waterside Perth in Scotland.

But this is still way off the record, after some 238mm of rain was measured at Sloy Main Adit in Argyll & Bute between 9am on January 17, 1974 and 9am the following day.

This is the highest total on record in Scotland for what the Met Office calls a ‘rainfall day’: the 24 hours from 9am to 9am.

The highest equivalent total recorded in England is 279mm, on July 18, 1955 at Martinstown in Dorset, while the highest in Wales is 211mm, on November 11, 1929 at Lluest Wen Reservoir in Mid Glamorgan.

The highest in Northern Ireland is 159mm, recorded on October 31, 1968 at Tollymore Forest in County Down.

The highest total for any 24-hour period in the UK is 341.4mm, recorded from 6pm December 4, 2015 to 6pm the following day at Honister Pass in Cumbria.

Map shows rain warning for London

The Met Office issued a new rain warning for London yesterday evening, running until 9am this morning. It warns of up to 50mm (2in) of rain. Here is the map:

Tie down your trampolines, says Network Rail

Network Rail Scotland has asked people living near railway lines to ensure tents, trampolines and garden furniture are secure so they don’t blow on to the tracks:

Met Office confirms month's worth of rain

The Met Office has just confirmed that the highest amount of rainfall recorded since the start of yesterday has been 164mm (6.4in) at Waterside Perth.

Scotland typically receives around 168mm of rainfall in October, so that means the country has received more than this amount in the span of 31 hours.

Woman's body recovered from river in Angus

The body of a 57-year-old woman was recovered yesterday from a river at Glen Esk in Angus, where a red weather alert is in place.

Police Scotland were called to the Water of Lee at Glen Esk at 1.45pm after she was swept into the river, and the body was found at 4pm. A spokesperson added: ‘There are no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death.’

Latest Met Office UK weather forecast

The Met Office has released a map showing how heavy rain and strong winds are impacting Britain this morning as weather warnings remain in place:

Flooding affects London Underground stations

Transport for London says two Underground stations were impacted by flooding this morning – Kew Gardens and Victoria, which are both on the District line:

'Severe impacts' on trains until tomorrow

National Rail has warned passengers to expect ‘severe impacts’ on services due to Storm Babet until tomorrow after red and amber weather warnings were issued.

Follow MailOnline throughout today for updates on how the storm is affecting travel.

Full story – Storm Babet targets England

We’ll start with a look at our top story today, with Storm Babet now turning its fury on England after battering much of Scotland.

More than an inch (25.4mm) of rain fell on parts of England overnight and motorways were left with standing water. Here is the full story on MailOnline:

Welcome to MailOnline's Storm Babet liveblog

Good morning, and welcome to MailOnline’s latest Storm Babet liveblog today as the UK braces for further chaos after a day of 70mph winds and heavy rainfall.

Much of country is covered by weather warnings – with a rare red ‘danger to life’ alert in place for parts of North East Scotland, where a 57-year-old woman was swept to her death yesterday.

Follow MailOnline’s liveblog throughout today for all the latest updates.

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