Bristol will be colder than Moscow this weekend

Despite the misleadingly friendly name, Storm Barney is currently hitting us with gusts of wind up to 85mph and heavy rain.

As if that isn’t enough to deal with, temperatures are also expected to drop to around 5°C this weekend, making the UK colder than Reykjavik in Iceland and Moscow in Russia.

The cold weather means some parts of Bristol may see snowfall, though sleet is more likely. Up to eight inches of the white stuff is expected to fall up north.

The storm is only the second in British history to have been severe enough to be given a name under the new system, after storm Abigail soaked us last week.

Storm Barney comes two weeks after dense fog covered Bristol which left the Suspension Bridge barely visible from one side of it to the other.

You’re gonna need a brolly with that

The Met Office have issued a Yellow weather warning, warning of “hazardous weather which has the potential to cause danger to life or widespread disruption”. Anyone who has had to walk home in the past few days will know winds have been visibly forcing rain across the Downs in sheets, and much of Whiteladies Road has at times become a stream of running rainwater.

Before the storm was expected to hit, Neil Davies of the Environment Agency also released a plea to all people thinking of attempting to obtain that much coveted “Storm Selfie”.

Good effort guys, I feel safer already

In a statement the agency said:  “The power of Mother Nature is a fascination to us all – and taking ‘Storm Selfies’ may seem exhilarating – but over the last few years we’ve had an increasing number of people putting themselves and family members at severe risk along coastal paths and promenades.”

The Met Office warns of the danger people are putting themselves in trying to take a picture of themselves in perilous weather conditions, the newest and most exciting craze that none but those taking part will ever understand.