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The Met Office has issued a red warning for a storm set to bring heavy rainfall and winds to parts of the east of Scotland later this week.

Storm Babet is expected to cause severe flooding on Thursday. There could also be power cuts and disruption to travel on roads, rail and by air.

Angus, Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire are expected to be the worst affected areas of the country.

The weather warning will apply from 6pm on Thursday until 12pm on Friday.

Scotland's first minister Humza Yousaf warned people not to travel unless it was essential in those parts of Scotland impacted by the red weather warning.

"Please be aware of the challenging weather we are due to experience," he posted on X, previously known as Twitter.

"Weather warning across Angus and the north east has been upgraded to red. Travel should be avoided unless absolutely essential."

"The Scottish government is working with local resilience partners, including our emergency services, to ensure we keep everyone safe & mitigate disruption as best we can," he added.

Train company ScotRail has also warned people travelling on Thursday and Friday to check journeys in advance, with Storm Babet "likely to cause disruption to services".

Aberdeenshire Council has told its residents to make use of sandbags to help protect their properties.

On Friday morning the red warning will extend down the east of England to the south coast.

Amber and yellow warnings for rain and wind are in place across most of Scotland, with yellow warnings covering a lot of the country until Saturday.

Weather warnings have also been issued for other parts of the UK including Northern Ireland and northern and eastern areas of England.

Red is the most serious weather warning the Met Office issues.

It means that it is likely that the weather will cause damage, for example to buildings and roads.

People are told to avoid travelling if they can because the extreme weather and its effects could be a danger to life.

A red weather warning means it's expected that there will be problems getting out and about - so buses, trains and flights may be delayed or cancelled altogether.

It could affect power cables which may mean homes in the area may experience power cuts.

The Met Office says that when it issues a red weather warning, people must stay away from areas which could be potentially dangerous, and they should follow the advice of the emergency services and local authorities.