UK storm names 2018-19: What are the Met Office names for this season and how are the titles chosen?

The Met Office has released its list of storm name for the new season (Met Office)
Met Office
Tom Herbert19 September 2018

Storm Ali is currently battering parts of the UK and Ireland with torrential wind and rain.

Two people have died in the storm, while forecasters have warned of travel disruption, power cuts and flying debris.

Gales of up to 91mph have been hit Northern Ireland and parts of Scotland, along with north-west and north-east England.

But as Ali pummels the UK, with forecasters saying there is now a high likelihood of impacts across a swathe of the country, many will be asking why we need to name our deadly storms.

Police clear a tree as Storm Ali hits land
Getty Images

Why do we give storms names?

The Met Office has only recently started to name storms.

The concept was first introduced in 2015, and is jointly run by the Met Office and Met Éireann, the Irish meteorological service.

A practice established by the US National Hurricane Center in the 1970s sees storms named in an alternating male/female pattern - so the next storm will be 'female' and named Bronagh.

The Met Office says naming storms helps to make sure people are aware of bad weather so they can prepare .

Derrick Ryall, Head of Public Weather Services at the Met Office, said: “Naming storms has been proved to raise awareness of severe weather in the UK, providing a consistent message to the public and crucially prompting people to take action to prevent harm to themselves or to their property.”

 Sand is blown in the wind as Storm Ali hits
Getty Images

How are names chosen?

The season's names have been compiled from a list of submissions by the public, choosing some of the most popular names and also selecting those which reflect the nations, culture and diversity of the UK and Ireland.

One name beginning with each letter from the alphabet is chosen apart from Q, U, X, Y and Z, which complies with the international storm naming conventions.

The Met Office and Met Éireann have run the Name Our Storms scheme for four years.

Storms are only named for weather severe enough to be given an 'amber' or 'red' warning.

What are the Met Office names for this season?

Ali, Bronagh, Callum, Deirdre, Erik, Freya, Gareth, Hannah, Idris, Jane, Kevin, Lily, Max, Niamh, Oliver, Peggy, Ross, Saoirse, Tristan, Violet and Wyn.

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