Dramatic video captures falling branch in near-miss with car in Dorset during strong winds

Tap to watch the dramatic moment a branch fell from a tree almost hitting a driver's windscreen

A driver's dashcam has captured the dramatic moment a branch fell from a tree as southern England is hit with strong winds.

Video recorded from the A348 Ringwood Road in Bournemouth, Dorset shows the branch falling loose hitting the rear of the vehicle, missing the windscreen by seconds.

The driver managed to carry on but other road users stopped following the near-miss.

Southern England has been told by the Met Office to expect winds of up to 55 mph.

There's been an impact on public transport with South Western Railway warning of delays and cancellations.

A tree on the line towards Aldershot has led to problems between Bagshot and Camberley with the route blocked.

A tree came down on the line in Broadstairs with engineers working to remove it to reduce the impact on Southeastern trains.

Meanwhile Red Jet ferry departures from Cowes the Isle of Wight were cancelled because of the conditions.

Several events that were due to take place on Saturday were also postponed, including Goodwood's Festival of Speed and the Revival Festival in Maidstone, Kent.

Tom Morgan, meteorologist at the Met Office, said: “For the middle part of July we’re seeing quite unseasonably unsettled weather.

“We’ve got quite strong winds today across southern areas where we will potentially see gusts as high as 55mph bringing some minor disruption and damage to trees, for example, particularly in South Wales and southern parts of England.

“We’ve also got some thunderstorms which are moving through quite quickly in the south because of the wind, but the thunderstorms in Scotland and Northern Ireland will be much slower.

“There are many outdoor events expected to take place this weekend, we do urge you, wherever you are, to keep an eye on the forecast and leave plenty of time for your journeys because the weather may well cause some disruption from either strong winds or thunder and heavy rain.”

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