Power Outages Persist for Thousands of Homes After Storm Darragh

Approximately 4,000 residences in the West of England continue to experience power outages following the disruption caused by Storm Darragh. On Sunday, over 10,000 properties across the region were affected by electricity cuts as the storm traversed the UK, bringing intense winds and significant rainfall nationwide. Falling trees, interrupted transportation, and cancelled events were reported. Wind speeds exceeded 90 miles per hour (144km p/h) in locations near the mouth of the River Severn. Matt Turner, from National Grid, stated that while electricity has been reconnected to the majority of properties, their engineers are working as quickly as possible to assist those still affected. Residents at Edithmead Leisure Park Homes in Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset, have been without power since the early hours of Saturday. Resident Barry Whitcombe recounted, “They [National Grid] told us that it’d be on by 6pm the next day. And then they updated that again to say ‘no, it’ll be 6pm on Sunday’.” Mr. Whitcombe further mentioned that current local information indicates that services might not be fully restored until at least midday on Tuesday. National Grid confirmed that as of 17:30 GMT on Monday, 3,706 properties in Bristol and Somerset were still experiencing power outages attributed to Storm Darragh. A spokesperson for the company stated, “Our regions bore the brunt of the awful conditions caused by Storm Darragh but we have made significant progress restoring power to more than 1.5 million customers since it hit our network.” They added, “We’ll be aiming to get the remaining customers off-supply reconnected as quickly as possible and apologise for the ongoing inconvenience they are facing as they wait for power to be restored.” During an interview with BBC Radio Bristol on Monday morning, Mr. Turner conveyed his appreciation for the patience shown by customers. He remarked, “I would like to take the opportunity to thank everybody for their patience as our teams work through the night and will continue to work through today to get people back online.” Nationwide, during the peak intensity of the storm, approximately eight million individuals experienced electricity loss due to wind damage to overhead lines and infrastructure. Travel Somerset announced an urgent closure of the A39 at West Quantoxhead on Monday at 15:30 GMT. This was due to a damaged National Grid pole and electricity cables posing a hazard near the carriageway. The agency stated that the road would reopen to traffic once repairs are finished. The majority of transportation services have now resumed normal operation following the storm. The M48 Severn Bridge is accessible in both directions again, having been closed throughout the weekend because of high winds. Great Western Railway reported that Westbury and Chippenham railway stations have also recommenced operations after sustaining storm damage. Nevertheless, GWR has recommended that passengers verify their travel plans in advance, as additional disruptions may occur in the aftermath of Storm Darragh. Network Rail crews will proceed with track safety assessments, and certain services might encounter delays and cancellations. Several flood warnings persist in Gloucestershire following Storm Darragh. Sections of the River Severn and River Wye are under red alerts due to the significant rainfall brought by the storm. For updates, follow BBC Bristol on Facebook, X and Instagram. Story ideas can be submitted via email or WhatsApp at 0800 313 4630. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content of external websites. Information regarding our external linking policy is available.