The Army is on standby to deal with the effects of Storm Eunice as people are urged to stay home and not travel unless necessary. Several new weather alerts have been issued across the UK for rain, snow, and ice for Friday night and into the weekend.
The Met Office has recorded gust speeds of up to 122 mph at the Needles, on the Isle of Wight, on Friday morning. This surpasses the strongest winds reported in 1987, in what was dubbed the 'Great Storm'.
During this storm, wind speeds on the night of October 15 peaked at 115mph.
This speed was recorded in Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex.
The Met Office said, “The Needles on the Isle of Wight recorded a wind gust of 122 mph this morning.
"This is provisionally the highest gust ever recorded in England.”
The previous record for England before Storm Eunice was recorded in Cornwall in 1979, when winds hit 118mph.
The Met Office issued two red weather warnings for wind ahead of the storm battering the UK on Friday.
This most severe level of warning includes potential loss of life due to flying debris.
A red weather warning was issued for wind conditions in Devon, Cornwall, Somerset and South Wales beginning at 7 am on Friday morning.
ZZ/PR