Storms struck UK

Seven people including a two-year-old boy have died and travel has been severely disrupted as gales and heavy downpours hit parts of the UK.

Four people died on the roads in North Yorkshire, Berkshire, Shropshire and Cheshire and two were killed in Greater Manchester.

The boy died after a wall collapsed on him in Kentish Town, north London.

Gusts of up to 70mph mean flights have been cancelled, rail speed restrictions enforced and sections of motorway shut.

The managing director of Birmingham Airport, Richard Heard, 49, died after a branch fell on his car on the B4373 Bridgnorth to Broseley road.

A male passenger in a Ford Fiesta was killed when a tree fell on the car in Streatley, Berkshire.

And a lorry driver died when his vehicle left the road and overturned in high winds on the A629 Skipton western bypass in North Yorkshire.

A man was killed after a lorry was blown onto his car on the A55 on the outskirts of Chester.

In Stockport, Greater Manchester, a woman in her 60s was crushed to death when a wall toppled onto her in high winds.

A man died after being blown into a metal shutter at an industrial estate in the Strangeways area of Manchester.

While England experienced high winds, Scotland has seen its first major snowfalls of 2007.

The weather has been causing problems across the country, including:

· Scottish Power said around 30,000 homes were without electricity in Cheshire and mid and north Wales due to the adverse weather

· Thousands of homes have been left without power in an area from Oxford to Poole and Chichester, the North East and across Central's Midlands' network

· Lord's Cricket Ground in London was left strewn with debris after winds damaged its roof

· In Kent, police warned of possible power cuts and the port of Dover, the M25 Dartford river crossing and the Sheppey Crossing were all shut

· There was snow and ice in County Durham, where part of the A68 at Tow Law was closed for a short time after lorries and cars skidded into ditches

· Strong winds have brought down part of a roof onto a busy shopping street in Hereford city centre

· Twenty-six mariners have been rescued from a damaged British container ship in the English Channel 50 miles (80km) off the Lizard in Cornwall

· The winds saw restrictions brought in at Heathrow airport, with flights scrapped by both British Airways and bmi. There were also cancellations at Manchester and Cardiff airports because of the weather.

On the roads, blown over lorries closed the M1 between junctions 29 and 30 in South Yorkshire.

Elsewhere, the M18 has been closed between junctions 4 and 7 northbound and junctions 6 and 7 southbound.

Train operators One and GNER are operating a revised and reduced timetable on the East Coast Mainline.

Cold snap

Forecasters said wind speeds in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, would pick up throughout the day, reaching 60 to 70mph in some parts and 80mph on high ground.

South and west facing coastlines were expected to bear the brunt of the storms.

Central Scotland Police said several cars became stuck in snow on the A809 near Killearn, while Strathclyde has seen snow on the M74 south of Hamilton, Lanarkshire.

The Highways Agency has advised all motorists to take extra care and to plan their routes in advance.

Friday is expected to be calmer but the country could be facing a cold snap next week.

Despite an unusually mild start to January, forecasters have warned that temperatures are likely to plummet beyond the weekend.