Gusts of up to 80mph, “blizzard” conditions and flying debris are expected on Thursday as Storm Doris swoops in from the Atlantic.

The Met Office has issued amber and yellow weather warnings for wind and snow across much of the UK for Thursday as the low pressure weather front moves in. Heavy rain is predicted for parts of north Wales, the Midlands, and east and north-west England, and northern Ireland.

The amber warning, which covers the Midlands, and east and north-west of England, alerts people that “whilst the strongest winds look to be only short-lived, damage to structures, interruptions to power supplies and widespread disruption to travel networks are likely, with a danger of injury from flying debris”.

Emma Sharples, a meteorologist at the Met Office, warned people with travel plans on Thursday to “keep an eye” on the forecast and avoid travel during the duration of the amber warning wherever possible.

Heavy snowfall is also expected in southern Scotland while higher areas could see up to 20cm of snow, while strong winds will create “blizzard” conditions too, Ms Sharples warned.

Storm Doris marks the first major winter weather front in the UK for two months. Despite the severity of the storm, its conditions are expected to be short-lived as the worst of the weather is predicted to be over by Thursday evening.

“We have got a fairly active area of low pressure coming in from the Atlantic,” Ms Sharples said.

“It moves west to east on Thursday and clears out by the evening. Friday looks like a quieter day all round,” she added, but said strong winds and rain are expected again over the weekend as a run of weather systems come in from the Atlantic.