HIGH winds have buffeted the region for the past 36 hours, causing disruption for many – with warnings there may be no respite over the weekend.

Gusts of up to 70mph led to challenging conditions for drivers, with the Highways Agency urging people to check before travelling.

The Met Office issued severe weather warnings for the North-East and the Yorkshire and Humber regions, with gale force winds expected during much of today.

A lorry toppled over on the A66, near Brough, close to the County Durham-Cumbria border, on Thursday evening.

A similar incident happened on the same road, near the Gilling West junction, in North Yorkshire, yesterday, leading to the road being closed to high-sided vehicles four several hours.

Winds of more than 100mph were recorded in Scotland, while Wales and Northern Ireland also experienced strong winds.

A 51-year-old man was killed on a rural road in Staffordshire when his car was struck by a tree uprooted by high winds.

In exposed mountain areas, wind speeds broke 115mph.

The Met Office said its calculator at the top of the Cairngorms, which shuts down at that speed, went out of action for four hours last night.

Yesterday’s meeting at Catterick racecourse, in North Yorkshire, was abandoned when high winds tore down barriers.

Clerk of the course Fiona Needham said: “With high winds, it is never as clear-cut as with frost, but we took the decision to abandon as soon as practically possible.

“It is the worst possible thing, to have to abandon this close to the start of racing, because we incur all of the costs associated with holding a meeting, but none of the income.

“But it would not have been safe to go ahead.”

Elsewhere, a fallen tree on the A177, near the junction for Thorpe Thewles, near Stockton, caused traffic problems yesterday afternoon.

Council-run parks in York were closed after a tree came down on a parked car.

Alison Cobb, a forecaster with MeteoGroup, said wet and windy weather would continue throughout the weekend.