Storm Bert wreaks havoc across UK and Ireland

London: Britain and Ireland faced travel chaos on Saturday as a winter storm battered northwest Europe with strong winds, heavy rain, snow and ice.

Storm Bert left at least 60,000 properties in Ireland without power, and closed roads and some ferry and train routes on both sides of the Irish Sea.

Media footage showed flooding in the west of Ireland, while floods prompted rail closures in Northern Ireland and snow impacted travel across Britain.

The heaviest snow hit Scotland and parts of northern and central England, with dozens of flood alerts in place.

The UK Met Office issued warnings for snow and ice for those regions, warning there was a "good chance some rural communities could be cut off".

Scottish hills could see up to 40 centimetres (16 inches) of snow, while winds approaching 70 miles (113 kilometers) per-hour were recorded in parts of Britain.

Ferry operator DFDS cancelled services on some routes until Monday, with sailings from Newhaven and Dover in southern England to Dieppe and Calais in France severely affected.

Flights were disrupted at Newcastle airport due to heavy snow, with some flights diverted to Belfast and Edinburgh.

Avanti West Coast, which runs rail services between England and Scotland, advised customers not to attempt travel beyond the northern English city of Preston, as it cancelled numerous trains.

National Highways also issued a "severe weather alert", warning of "blizzard conditions" affecting Yorkshire and northeast England, with a number of road closures announced.

Met Eireann, the Irish National Meteorological Service, had also issued a yellow warning for "very strong winds and heavy rain".

The worst impacted areas for power outages in Ireland were in western and northwestern counties, according to ESB Networks, which runs the country's electricity system.

"Crews and contractors are deployed and restoring power in impacted areas where it is safe to do so," it said.

More than 4,000 properties across Britain were without power by mid-Saturday -- the majority in southwest England -- with the National Grid operator saying power had been restored to "many homes and businesses".

Blackburn Rovers Championship football fixture against Portsmouth was postponed because of the storm.