The Met Office has issued yellow rain and wind warnings across much of the UK, with the possibility of hurricane-force winds of 80mph set to hit Britain in a matter of days.
Two separate alerts have been issued by the weather agency, with one which spans almost the entirety of England and Wales and lasts for over 36 hours.
Powerful winds are expected, bringing at their strongest gales of up to 80mph expected to be felt in coastal areas.
In its definition for hurricanes, the Met Office said: "A hurricane is an area of low pressure over tropical or sub-tropical waters, with organised convection (i.e. thunderstorm activity) and sustained winds near the surface of at least 74 mph".
Gusts of 80mph could hit in some areas, thanks to a deep low pressure system
Netweather/Met Office
"Strong winds and heavy rain potentially leading to some disruption," the Met Office warned issuing the 36-hour alert.
It comes into effect on Friday at 3pm and lasts until 6am on Sunday, and stretches from the North Northumberland coast, down to Land's End in western Cornwall.
Issuing the alert, the Met Office said: "A deep low may cross England and Wales from Friday afternoon, clearing to the east Saturday night. The low may bring a period of strong winds to much of the warning area, with some heavy rain likely to the north and west of the low centre, and some hill snow in the north (above about 200 metres).
"Around 15-25 mm of rain may fall quite widely, more particularly across central, northern and western parts of England and Wales, with exposed higher ground in the north and west (particularly parts of Wales, which are at greatest risk of seeing flooding impacts) perhaps locally seeing closer to 50-70 mm.
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Powerful winds are expected, bringing at their strongest gales of up to 80mph expected to be felt in coastal areas
Getty"Winds may quite widely gust to around 40-50 mph inland but locally could gust in excess of 60 mph, whilst around coasts, winds may gust to 60-70 mph, perhaps locally nearer 80 mph. The wind and rain may cause disruption to travel, with difficult driving conditions likely."
The forecaster said that journey times - air, train, road, and ferry - could all be impacted by the wet and windy conditions.
Flooding could also occur, causing damage to some buildings, whilst power cuts could also be on the cards.
"There is a small chance that injuries and danger to life could occur from large waves and beach material being thrown onto sea fronts, coastal roads and properties," it added.
A map showing wind gusts on Friday
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Another yellow warning was also issued by the Met Office - a wind alert that spans swathes of northern Ireland, Scotland and England.
The alert begins at 3pm tomorrow and lasts until 6am on Friday, resulting in a stretch of England ranging from Norwich to Whitehaven having a double warning in place for the early hours of the morning.
Issuing the warning, the Met Office said: "Westerly or northwesterly winds will increase across Northern Ireland, parts of Scotland, north Wales, northern England, the north Midlands and East Anglia during Thursday afternoon and evening. Inland gusts of 40-50 mph are possible, with perhaps 60-70 mph along exposed coasts, especially through the North Channel and Irish Sea, causing some travel disruption. Strong gusts will also be associated with heavy showers which move through at times."
Much like the 36-hour warning, delays to transport are expected, and short-term loss of power could also be likely.
