A HUGE crane collapsed on a building today as Britain was battered by monster 80mph gales and flooding.

The crane appeared to "snap in half" as it crashed at the building site in Kingston, West London at around 4.30pm today.

Emergency crews were scrambled to the scene but there are not believed to be any injuries.

The Met Police confirmed residents close to the development have been evacuated "as a precaution".

One witness claimed the crane appeared to "snap in half" as it partially collapsed.

It was originally understood the crane collapsed on  a Kingston University building but it happened on private building site near its Penrhyn Road campus.

It came as the Met Office issued four weather warnings across most of northern England and Scotland as the UK braces itself for a battering before Thursday's election.

The highest wind recorded today was 78mph in Capel Curig, Wales as the Met Office warned of flooding to homes and business in Scotland.

Up to 100mm of rain is also set to fall across parts of the Northern England in just nine hours – two thirds the monthly average –  with the bad weather causing travel chaos.

Met Office meteorologist Mark Wilson told Sun Online: "It is going to be pretty windy.

"We would advise people to take care and be aware of windy conditions.

"There will be some disruption to transport."

WHIRL WIND

The highest wind recorded today was 78mph in Capel Curig, Wales as the Met Office warned of flooding to homes and business in Scotland.

And the blustery conditions are expected to continue into Wednesday, with winds hitting up to 55mph in northern Scotland.

The south coast of England and the west coast of Wales could see winds hit as high as 40mph.

And there is a risk of up to 5-10cm of snow in parts of northern England and Wales.

Rain is also expected to drench voters heading to the polls for Thursday's general election.

And winds are also set to hit Brits on polling day, with gusts of 45-50mph in the south west of the country.

It comes after Storm Atiyah pounded Britain when it make landfall this week, with power lines knocked down and trees felled.

Forecasters have also warned that Christmas decorations could become dangerous projectiles in the stormy weather and homeowners should secure ornaments as wind speeds pick up, after Storm Atiyah made landfall earlier this week.

Tuesday's driving winds hit commuters in parts of the UK today with two lorries blown as bad weather swept across Scotland on Tuesday morning.

The HGVs were travelling along the A1 between Innerwick and Skateraw in East Lothian when they toppled over at around 7.45am, leaving the road blocked in both directions.

The Tay Road Bridge was only open to cars and the central walkway was closed because of the high winds and heavy rain, which also hit rail services.

Waves coming over the sea wall at Saltcoats, North Ayrshire, hit railway power lines, causing trains between Kilwinning and Largs and Ardrossan to be cancelled.

Flooding closed the line between Craigendoran and Helensburgh.

A wind warning was also issued for eastern parts until 5pm as well as an ice warning across the Highlands from 10pm on Tuesday to 10am on Wednesday.

The weather caused Edinburgh's Christmas market and rides to remain closed.

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