the boats there. these pictures are from this morning in milford on sea on the hampshire coast. you can see the swell this system is creating, which has forced the closure of the beach. the system has already been over north—west france, bringing gale—force winds. the country's transport minister says a lorry driver was killed when a tree fell on his vehicle in the ayn region. our reporter, aruna iyengar, has the very latest. waves crashing over the sea wall in devon. a car is washed into the sea. this is penzance in cornwall. and there is heavy rainfall and flooding across the country. areas of northern ireland have been flooded. this is the scene in newry. storm ciaran is unleashing its power across the country. hampshire county council has declared a major incident for residents in hampshire and the isle of wight. many schools are putting safety first and will be shut in hampshire, southampton and devon. amber wind warnings, the second highest level of alert, are in place for parts of the south coast. gusts are expected to reach 70 to 80 mph in the south, and 20 to 30 millimetres of rain is expected to fall today. a lot of trees injersey, some of them will obviously fall down. slates and things flying about and causing damage. the storm struck the channel islands last night. jersey and guernsey have seen some of their worst storm conditions in decades. so there has been a lot of structural damage, a lot of roofs, trees are down, obviously. the roads are blocked, so there is a lot of debris on the roads. they were preparing yesterday. flood defences were put in place. schools across the islands are closed. flights are grounded at guernsey and alderney airports. people have been asked not to stockpile goods after supermarket shelves were stripped. national highways has issued a warning to drivers in the south—east, saying there is the risk of cars being blown over. they're also warning about flooded roads. train and ferry companies are warning of severe disruption to services. they're asking customers to check online before they travel. the advice is to stay indoors unless you have to go out. aruna iyengar, bbc news. let's bring in our weather presenter carol kirkwood. we were hearing how bad things have beenin we were hearing how bad things have been injersey in the channel islands in general, how bad are things now?— islands in general, how bad are thins now? , . , , , things now? things are still pretty bad for some _ things now? things are still pretty bad for some of— things now? things are still pretty bad for some of us _ things now? things are still pretty bad for some of us right _ things now? things are still pretty bad for some of us right now. - things now? things are still pretty bad for some of us right now. the | bad for some of us right now. the met office still has an amber weather warning after some coastal counties of england. east sussex and also kent. this will in the south—west expire just two minutes ago. we are still looking at the potential for 70 to 80 mph gusts of wind, damaging guests, and also with exposure, through the straits of dover we could have guests in excess of that. we are not quite out of the woods just yet. find of that. we are not quite out of the woods just yet-— woods 'ust yet. and the issue that we woods just yet. and the issue that we were hearing _ woods just yet. and the issue that we were hearing about _ woods just yet. and the issue that we were hearing about obviously l woods just yet. and the issue that | we were hearing about obviously is that the water that is falling, the rain that is falling, is falling onto ground that already saturated. that is absolutely right. we have had some torrential rain this morning as well. if we focus on the channel islands once again, these are the wind speeds that we have had this morning. in excess of 100 mph for seven. this morning. in excess of 100 mph forseven. but this morning. in excess of 100 mph for seven. but they are gusts, they are variable. and we have had some torrential rain from the wind speeds in the channel islands are starting to come down but still at the moment, injersey, we are looking at gusts of 7a mph. you conceal the rain that we have had in the channel islands but notjust the channel islands, across many parts of the uk, and if you note this circle, they are rotating around an area of low pressure. that area of low pressure is what is storm ciaran. some nasty, tricky conditions out there. a lot of surface water and spray on the roads. if you are travelling, take extra care. we have a ready scene the damage across some southern areas, including the channel islands.— southern areas, including the channel islands. , my channel islands. very tricky driving conditions we _ channel islands. very tricky driving conditions we have _ channel islands. very tricky driving conditions we have been _ channel islands. very tricky driving conditions we have been hearing i conditions we have been hearing about how difficult things are on the trains, the trees that are on the trains, the trees that are on the tracks and we have seen pictures of trampolines as well on the tracks. where is it moving, that large patch of blue? this tracks. where is it moving, that large patch of blue?— large patch of blue? this is the centre of the _ large patch of blue? this is the centre of the low _ large patch of blue? this is the centre of the low pressure, - large patch of blue? this is the | centre of the low pressure, this large patch of blue? this is the i centre of the low pressure, this is the centre of the storm, it is heading north—eastwards. at the moment, the winds are starting to come down across the south—west of england. slowly coming down across the channel islands. but they are still gusty. in the centre of this low, the winds are really like. 0n the other side of the centre of the low pressure, in kent for example, 78 mph. as this storm system pushes towards the north—east, it will continue to start to weaken and the other thing is the stronger winds on the rain will follow on behind. if you think of an area of low pressure as dragging all this with, as it pushes out into the north sea, but the other thing is that we are looking at the wind and the aim of around an area of low pressure in an anticlockwise direction. as this all pushes this way, we still have everything rotating around it anticlockwise, so we will see further rain coming in across eastern scotland and also north—east england, where again, we have had issues of flooding in recent days will stop what is the timescale you are expecting for it to have moved by? it is moving slowly, so we still have some rain connected with this across scotland and north—east in and into tomorrow and it still will be windy. for the rest of the uk, it is not going to be as windy, a few showers around, drier than today, and slowly tomorrow, the winds will tend to ease and by the time we get a saturday, it'll be gone. having said that, we have another area of low pressure coming in from the south—west on saturday and that will affect southern areas initially, not to the same extent as we are looking at today. we not expecting at this another storm.— another storm. very quickly, the distinction _ another storm. very quickly, the distinction between _ another storm. very quickly, the distinction between the - another storm. very quickly, the distinction between the red - another storm. very quickly, the distinction between the red and l distinction between the red and yellow and the amber warnings, can you tell us what the difference is between them?— between them? think of it as a traffic light _ between them? think of it as a traffic light system, _ between them? think of it as a traffic light system, the - between them? think of it as a traffic light system, the red - between them? think of it as a i traffic light system, the red light is the most serious one, if you like, that is danger to life and it is imminent, so basically, move and take heed of whatever you are advised to do by the emergency services and also the local authorities. this is a really important one and they are not issued regularly, although we have had two of late. the amber one is the next level down and it is the likelihood of impact because of the severe weather, so take action, so move now, and the yellow one is the lowest of them. the amount of rainfall that we are looking out at the moment is quite normal us were this time of year but because the ground is already saturated, it is exacerbating that risk and a lot of people think as well that if you live next to a river or the sea, thatis live next to a river or the sea, that is where you are at greatest risk of flooding. of course, you are, but when the water table is quite high and absolutely saturated, it will come up with the ground as well. if you are walking through a park and you are sloshing, that is because there is nowhere else for the water to go. it is because there is nowhere else for the water to go.— the water to go. it is saturated. thank you _ the water to go. it is saturated. thank you so — the water to go. it is saturated. thank you so much. _ live now to meghan 0wen, she's in st aubin injersey. jersey she's in st aubin injersey. has been having the wo it, jersey has been having the worst of it, really. talk through what it has been like overnight.— been like overnight. well, as you can see, been like overnight. well, as you can see. it _ been like overnight. well, as you can see. it is _ been like overnight. well, as you can see. it is a — been like overnight. well, as you can see, it is a pretty _ been like overnight. well, as you | can see, it is a pretty pre-picture. can see, it is a pretty pre—picture. that is the st aubin bay on the back it has died down slightly. the peak of the storm is over. but that does not mean that the problems have stopped. 0vernight, it was extraordinary. nobody really slept. we could just hear rain crashing on the windows, there were reports of hailstones the size of golf balls. and we woke up this morning to the damage. we have heard reports of the hospital roof being damaged. people have been told to evacuate their homes in some areas. i heard was that over a0 people had been evacuated and some ended up in accident and emergency as well. many of them are sheltering in hotels at the moment. the reason i had been zero morning is because it has not been safe to drive out and about. the roads are completely covered in trees and debris. it is a pretty unsafe place to be at the moment. you are basically cut off injersey. i know there are no flights in and out and no boat services either. exactly, people did have prior warning about this storm. they were able to prepare but i think there has been a real concern and what is so difficult in an island is that you rely on these boats to come in and actually... i have been previously based year as a reporter for a couple of years, so did see bad weather and boats could not get through but this feels different. people are concerned that they might be completely cut off from supplies. flights have stopped today. and we don't know when they will resume. i think it is sort of a wait and see. schools are closed comedy hospital has closed, except for emergencies. and people have been told to stay at home and stay safe inside. this is just part of the isolated nature of living on an island and why it is so difficult in these conditions. you talked about _ difficult in these conditions. you talked about how you are prepared for it in terms of knowing that it was coming but how well do you think jersey is coping, if it is possible for you to ascertain from where you are, in terms of how prepared is it in generalfor things are, in terms of how prepared is it in general for things like this? last night, we were out and about filming and there were authorities laying out sandbags along the sea walls and there were lots of police around, shutting off the yesterday, it was pretty much a ghost island with nobody around, the streets completely empty. people have gone out and about, the roads are still closed, and they are still struggling. people are following that advice on staying at home. at i think it has disrupted a lot more things than people realise. i have heard from many islanders who say this is worse than they imagined. it is a pretty syria situation here. people were having to stay in hotels overnight. people were having to stay in hotels overniaht. , , overnight. yes, exactly. there were a few parish — overnight. yes, exactly. there were a few parish halls _ overnight. yes, exactly. there were a few parish halls open _ overnight. yes, exactly. there were a few parish halls open overnight i a few parish halls open overnight for people who needed a safe place to stay and actually quite a few took that offer up. they homes were... some people had rules coming off their homes, garden fences collapsing. so many have had to evacuate and now many are just staying in hotels, dozens of islanders are staying in hotels, just waiting to see what the next piece of advice will be. i think, like i said, no one really knows, it is unpredictable, and unpredictable situation. i think it is a question of assessing today really what the damage is an when people might be able to go back but at this point, we don't have those answers. thank ou ve we don't have those answers. thank you very much _ we don't have those answers. thank you very much for — we don't have those answers. thank you very much for talking _ we don't have those answers. thank you very much for talking us - we don't have those answers. thank you very much for talking us through all of that. another video to show you — extraordinary footage of the moment a window was blown in in the middle of the night, in st clements injersey. take a look... the wind blew in the window. it was caught on a baby monitor. jessica 0'reilly was asleep at her home when the sound of storm ciaran woke her. moments later her window was blown inwards. she manages to grab her babyjust in time. that window coming crashing through into the bedroom. earlier, i spoke to andrew gilham, the national operations manager at the environment agency. it is quite a wet and wild morning out there, as you have been discussing with your viewers. certainly, the wins have been the focus i think of much of the news and the damage that we have seen. 0ur priority has been, our concern has been, the rain that has fallen with that win. we saw a lot of rainfall over the last few weeks, which resulted in a lot of flooding, and as a result the ground is saturated and so any rain that is falling now will fall through the day, will run off quite quickly and flow into the already swollen rivers. currently, we have 68 flood warnings in force across the country and a further 17a flood alerts, which means that flooding is possible. i would urge anybody who is thinking of going out and about to listen to the advice of other emergency services and the coastguard near the sea, and seriously consider your own safety. certainly when you are driving, we would expect to see quite a lot of surface water flooding. would expect to see quite a lot of surface waterflooding. driving surface water flooding. driving through surface waterflooding. driving through flood water has its own risks and i would discourage anyone from doing that. if the water is deeper than about a foot, cars can start to float. you cannot see what is below floodwater. you cannot see how deep it is. please don't drive through floodwater. and even for pedestrians, floodwater has its own hazards. you cannot see ditches, you cannot see drops, that you would ordinarily see and manhole covers can get removed. just by the pressure of the water. please take extreme care if you are out and about. our teams in the environment agency have been monitoring the situation around the clock for the last few weeks. we will issue more flood warnings as we need to. throughout the day. and as we see high tides coming in along the south coast and the east coast through the day, we do expect to see large waves on the coastline and whilst our teams have been out repairing our assets and looking after them to make sure they are ready for the storms, they have had quite a sustained period of attack from the weather. we are doing our bit. and weather. we are doing our bit. and we are encouraging the communities to do their bit as well. we we are encouraging the communities to do their bit as well.— to do their bit as well. we did have uuite a bit to do their bit as well. we did have quite a bit of _ to do their bit as well. we did have quite a bit of warning _ to do their bit as well. we did have quite a bit of warning of— to do their bit as well. we did have quite a bit of warning of this, - quite a bit of warning of this, didn't we? we quite a bit of warning of this, didn't we?— quite a bit of warning of this, didn't we? ~ ~ ' . didn't we? we did, the met office have been forecasting _ didn't we? we did, the met office have been forecasting bad - didn't we? we did, the met office| have been forecasting bad weather and that enabled us to plan not only internally but also with our colleagues across the emergency services and local authorities and as a result of that, i think we are in a good place for our teams are out, keeping the rivers as clear as we can, making sure all of our flood defence structures are as they can. clearly, with strong winds, you do see debris, trees coming down, branches falling off and ending up in rivers, those can increase the risk of flooding as a result of blockages. and again, if anybody is out and about and sees a blockage, then please report it and we will do our best to remove it when we can, when it is safe to do so. but also, anyone who is concerned about the risk of flooding can check on the internet, on gulf dock uk, whether as lots of very useful information about what to do, before, during and after a flood event, you can also get the latest on our flood warnings on there as well. if you don't have access to the internet then you can call the flood line number, which is 03a5 9881188. we will continue to monitor the weather and impact as a result of the rainfalls and we will issue any further flood warnings as we need to throughout the day. the trainin: we need to throughout the day. the training system is so important. —— training system is so important. —— training system. how prepared is the uk in general or weather events like this, which are all too often these days? pm this, which are all too often these da s? �* . ' this, which are all too often these da s? . ., , ., this, which are all too often these das? .,' ., ., this, which are all too often these da s? . ., , ., ., ., ~ days? an awful out of work those earnina days? an awful out of work those earning the _ days? an awful out of work those earning the short, _ days? an awful out of work those earning the short, medium - days? an awful out of work those earning the short, medium and i earning the short, medium and long—term to make sure that as nation across england, we are on top of managing flood risk as best we can for we have to prioritise our investment to those communities where flood risk is greatest, but it is not something that the environment agency can do alone. we very much work in partnership with communities and other public sector organisations because it is notjust about building flood defences or maintaining flood defences, it is about warning and informing communities, helping make correct longer term decisions and that is why we have a long—term flood risk strategy in place for the country, which very much the work we are doing today is fitting within. what doing today is fitting within. what about the driving _ doing today is fitting