Storm Bert batters UK as thousands of homes left without power

The storm has already claimed lives as it moves across the country

Author: Rory GannonPublished 23rd Nov 2024

Thousands of homes have been left without power as Storm Bert continues to batter the UK.

Temperatures have risen to double figures on Saturday (November 23rd), with winds also reaching speeds of up to 70 miles per hour.

Snow and heavy rain is also causing heavy flooding across the North of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, with power outages expected overnight.

A man has already died as a result of the storm after a tree fell on his car as he was heading southbound on the A34 in Hampshire.

A man in his 60s who was driving a black Mercedes was confirmed dead at the scene on the A34 southbound carriageway, between Kings Worthy and Winnall, and the force is investigating whether the incident was linked to the weather.

Over 30,000 homes are believed to be without power across England and Wales as a result of the poor weather conditions.

Speaking about the power cuts, Ross Easton, of Energy Networks Association (ENA) said: "There are a few localised weather-related power cuts in parts of Britain this morning. However, for most parts of the country the severe weather hasn't yet had a significant impact.

"Forecasters are describing this as a 'multi-hazard event' with the worst of the weather yet to arrive, and so our members have extra engineers and contact centre teams available, and control rooms are monitoring the storm closely as it develops."

Over 100 separate flood alerts are now in place across the UK, according to the Government website.

Among these, the Environment Agency has issued over a dozen flood warnings - meaning that flooding is imminent across the north west of England, particularly along the M61 between Manchester and Preston.

Met Office officials have said that the rain will continue overnight, before things will die down as the storm passes through the country, with the weather set to settle early next week.

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