London's New Year's Day parade delayed amid high winds, as over 100 flood warnings issued across the UK

1 January 2025, 08:22 | Updated: 1 January 2025, 10:40

London's New Year's Day parade has been delayed amid fears of high winds, and some 130 flood warnings are in place as the wintry weather causes travel disruption.

The central London parade was pushed back half an hour to 12.30 after advice from forecasters at the Met Office.

Inflatable cartoon characters will no longer be used in the parade, event spokesman Dan Kirkby said.

Wind, rain and snow warnings are in force across parts of the UK, with the threat of flooding and disruption to New Year's Day travel.

Large parts of England and Wales will be hit by strong winds until 3pm on Wednesday, while north-west England and Wales are forecast to see heavy rain for much of the morning.

Read more: Edinburgh's Hogmanay, Blackpool and Newcastle fireworks cancelled as 'severe weather' dampens New Year's Eve

Read more: UK snow warning issued by Met Office as 'heavy' snowfall expected

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 on Thursday, 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.

An amber alert was in place for North-West England until 9am with the Met Office saying heavy rain had fallen across the region for several hours.

The forecaster said it was expected to affect parts of Cheshire, Derbyshire and South Yorkshire for a few hours.

The Met Office warning stretches from Settle in the Yorkshire Dales across to Preston and down to parts of the Peak District.

It states that heavy rainfall is "likely to lead to disruption including flooding in some locations" with a chance some places could see more than 10cm of rain.

Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service said it had been experiencing a high number of 999 calls due to flooding.

TransPennine Express urged customers on its services not to travel before noon on Wednesday, saying flooding was causing "significant issues" in Greater Manchester and Cheshire.

The line was closed between Manchester Piccadilly and Warrington Central with disruption expected until the end of the day, according to National Rail.

Trains will not operate between Manchester Airport and the city's stations on Wednesday, as well as routes between Manchester to Liverpool Lime Street and from both Liverpool and Manchester to Huddersfield, Leeds and York.

Flooding is also blocking the line between Todmorden and Rochdale with disruption expected until noon with further predicted flooding affecting services calling at Rotherham Central.

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.

A section of the A628 Woodhead Pass between Woolley Bridge and Flouch was closed in both directions, while flooding was also affecting the M6 between Junctions 18 and 20.

Other parts of the country were also seeing disruption with the M48 Severn Bridge closed in both directions due to high winds, while the A15 Humber Bridge was closed again to high-sided vehicles after reopening overnight.

In Wales, Network Rail said the Conwy Valley Line between Blaenau Ffestiniog and Llandudno Junction would be closed throughout New Year's Day due to fallen trees on the line and an assessment of the embankment.

Winds of up to 60mph are forecast across much of England and Wales all day on Wednesday, with gusts of 75mph likely around coastal areas and hills, according to the Met Office.

Rain turning to snow on New Year's Day is likely to cause travel disruption, particularly on roads and railways across Grampian, Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Moray, and the Highlands & Eilean Siar, the Met Office said.

It comes after Edinburgh's Hogmanay celebrations, including street parties and fireworks, were cancelled due to safety concerns.

Fireworks displays in Blackpool, Newcastle, Ripon in North Yorkshire, and the Isle of Wight were axed.

London's New Year's Eve fireworks event went ahead as planned.

Forecasters say the high winds and rain may also cause flooding, particularly in the Midlands and Pennines, with the Environment Agency urging people to stay away from swollen rivers and avoid driving through floodwater.

In the Highlands, flooding forced the closure of the A9 at Tomich.

The Far North Line was also shut down temporarily, while rail services between Dingwall and Inverness were halted due to flooding.

Forecasters warn of possible blizzard conditions, particularly over high ground in Sutherland and Caithness.

Snow is expected to fall heavily over the Highlands, with 10-20cm accumulating above 150-200 metres.