Storm Babet LIVE updates as Met Office weather warnings come into effect for Greater Manchester

A Met Office amber alert for rain is to come into effect for parts of Greater Manchester on Friday morning as Storm Babet batters the country.

The storm, the second named storm of the season, arrived this week bringing strong winds and heavy rain.

An amber warning for rain will come into force at midday and last until 6am on Saturday. The amber warning area covers Manchester and areas to the east of the city, including Tameside, Stockport, Oldham and Rochdale.

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The Met Office says the areas covered by the warning should expect 'persistent heavy rain' with the 'likelihood of some flooding and disruption'. A less severe yellow warning for rain, which covers the whole region, comes into force at 6pm runs until 6am on Saturday.

A number of other warnings are also in place across the country. Hundreds of homes were evacuated in Scotland last night as a rare red warning has been in place for the area around Dundee and Forfar since 6pm on Thursday night.

The storm is expected to cause travel disruption across the region and UK on Friday. Commuters heading by train are being asked to check their journey before setting off.

Phil James, Network Rail’s North West route director, said: “While our extreme weather action teams have been preparing for this bad weather for several days, it’s really difficult to know exactly when and where it will strike, which is why we're asking people to check before they travel.

Follow all the latest updates from Storm Babet in our live blog below.

There are currently no flood alerts or warnings in place in Greater