Wouldn’t doubt they’re not exaggerating some, but anything over 100MPH can create a lot of damage and sounds like they’ve already had a bunch of rain as the rivers and creeks are already flooded. This winter has really been colder, wetter, and winder than normal for the UK.
Wetter, yes; windier, yes; colder - certainly not. The rain and wind are from warm air over the Atlantic. (Cold winters in the UK are relatively dry, with continental air.) The UK- wide average in January was 2 degrees c above the long-term average. That's a lot. It's northern Scandinavia which has had the really exceptional conditions - 4 degrees c above average. Caused by exactly the same Arctic vortex which brought exceptional cold to the US.