The Met Office has issued a red weather warning for rain across parts of Scotland.
Storm Babet is expected to bring "exceptional rainfall" which will cause severe flooding and risk to life on Thursday.
The worst affected areas are set to be around Angus, Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire.
The weather warning runs from 18:00 on Thursday until noon on Friday.
Amber and yellow warnings for rain and wind are in place across most of Scotland and other parts of the UK.
On Friday morning, the warning extends down the east of England to the south coast.
ScotRail has warned people travelling on Thursday and Friday to check journeys in advance, with Storm Babet "likely to cause disruption to services".
Aberdeenshire Council is urging residents to take advantage of sandbags to help protect properties.
The local authority was holding a resilience meeting on Wednesday morning.
Perth and Kinross Council said it would close all of its floodgates on Wednesday, with the exception of those at the Queen's Bridge, which the authority said would be closed "should this become necessary."
The authority was previously criticised over its delay in closing the North Inch floodgates during heavy rain and rising water levels earlier this month, which led to properties and businesses being flooded as a result.
Storm Babet, a complex area of low pressure which developed to the west of the Iberian Peninsula, was named by the Met Office on Monday morning.
People in others parts of the UK and Ireland are also being warned about the approach of the extreme rain and wind.
The Met Office and Irish forecasting agency Met Eireann have issued a range of warnings due to the arrival of the storm.
A Status Orange rain warning is in place along Ireland's southern coast for counties Cork, Kerry and Waterford.
The RNLI warned the strong winds that have been forecast along with heavy rain are likely to cause dangerous conditions for those visiting the coast around the UK and Ireland.
RNLI water safety partner Sam Hughes said: "The RNLI advises staying a safe distance away from the water and cliff edges as the conditions could knock you off your feet or wash you into the sea. It is not worth risking your life."
The Met Office said the last red warning issued was for extreme heat in July last year.
The last UK red warning for rain was in February 2020 in South Wales for Storm Dennis, while the last in Scotland was in December 2015 for Storm Desmond.
