Storm Amy hits areas in the UK, bringing alerts for strong winds and heavy rainfall.

The storm system Amy has moved into the UK, causing heavy rain and strong winds to many regions in the country.

High-Level Alert for Scotland's North and West

An amber wind warning is in place for parts of northern and western Scotland, where the Met Office are warning of electricity outages and airborne wreckage that could threaten safety.

A less severe yellow alert for winds has been announced for all of Scotland and Northern Ireland, as well as Wales and north-west England, through to Saturday night.

Tragically, a man in his 40s lost his life in the Irish Republic in what authorities referred to as a "incident linked to the weather."

Weather Warnings Across the UK

Areas in Northern Ireland, Scotland, and north-west England also have a yellow rain warning in place.

Some regions in Northern Ireland were under an amber wind warning during the earlier part of Friday, and numerous schools shut their doors ahead of schedule as a safety measure.

Approximately 50,000 households there are presently experiencing power outages, based on information from NIE Networks.

Local police authorities said the rail network was suspended due to widespread tree falls, while airports warned passengers to confirm flight details before traveling.

The wind alert at yellow level for Scotland, Northern Ireland, and parts of Wales and north-west England will continue until Saturday at midnight.

A yellow "heavy rain" warning affecting extensive areas of Scotland will persist until Saturday midnight.

Transportation Issues and Suspended Services

• A number of ScotRail trains and boat services were cancelled before the storm hit.
• Some bridges will be closed to high-sided vehicles.
• Rail operators announced all services out of Glasgow Central have been stopped until at least Saturday afternoon.

Storm Amy's Path

Amy, which is the inaugural named storm this season will move to the north of the UK through Friday night, when peak wind conditions are forecast.

A chilly weather system will also move southward, bringing heavy rain.

During the night, the gusts will reach their maximum across Scotland as heavy rain sweeps southeast across England and Wales, before slowly subsiding later on Saturday.

Although Saturday will still be very windy, there will be a combination of bright intervals and rainfall, mainly occurring over the UK's north and west.

Forecast for the Weekend

Come Sunday, Amy will have progressed further into the North Sea so it will be less rainy with calmer winds for the second half of the weekend.

The next storm name will be Bram. A fresh set of names is published each year by weather officials before the storm season begins in September with both male and female names selected through public input.

Storms can be named by either the Met Office, Met Éireann or the Dutch weather service KNMI when impacts are forecast to be "medium to high."