Thousands of homes lose power as Storm Austen hits south-west England
Storm Austen, the first named storm of the year in the UK, struck the south-west on Friday, leaving more than 16,000 homes without power and disrupting schools in Cornwall. A second storm, Boelo, is expected from Saturday, with an amber wind warning in place.
Storm Austen, the first named storm of the season in the UK, battered south-west England, including Cornwall, on Friday 23 October. A gust of 76mph was recorded at St Mary's Airport on the Isles of Scilly. Thousands of homes lost electricity, and a number of schools opened late or stayed shut.
Power cuts and schools
According to National Grid, which operates the electricity transmission network in Great Britain, more than 16,000 homes in the south-west were without power shortly before 11am. The company said engineers had already restored supply to more than 12,000 properties by 8am. Dozens of schools across Cornwall opened late, while others did not open at all.
The Met Office, the UK's national weather service, issued an amber wind warning for Cornwall, Devon and the Isles of Scilly on Wednesday. It was in force from 1am to 10am on Friday.
Storm Boelo next
Forecasters have now issued a 24-hour amber wind warning linked to Storm Boelo, the second named storm of the year, starting at 9pm on Saturday. It covers Scotland, the north coast of Northern Ireland, and Cumbria and Northumberland in northern England. Gusts of up to 80mph could hit exposed coastal areas, with winds of 60-70mph widespread elsewhere. The Met Office warned of danger to life from flying debris and said there was a "good chance" of power cuts, damage to buildings, uprooted trees and rail and flight cancellations. In the Republic of Ireland, the national weather agency Met Éireann issued six warnings of varying severity for Saturday, mostly affecting counties on the west coast.
Government response
Prime minister Andy Burnham, speaking to reporters at a summit in Aintree, Liverpool, held to learn lessons from the summer's record wildfires, said the country could face a winter of greater flooding. Asked whether the government was playing catch-up on civil preparedness, he said it was not, stressing that people should keep food and essential supplies at home. A government campaign urging the public to stock up for multi-day emergencies drew wide attention overnight.
