Friday’s red weather warning is the first in the north since the Met Office changed how it classifies warnings in 2011

An emergency alert has been sent to millions of people in Scotland ahead of a rare red weather warning. People with compatible mobile phones living in the 22 council areas of the country expected to be worst hit by the storm received the alert at approximately 18:00.

Several weather warnings - ranging from yellow to red - have been issued across the country, with the worst conditions expected to hit Northern Ireland and Scotland