National Grid Continues Efforts to Restore Power After Storm Darragh

Following Storm Darragh over the weekend, more than 3,000 properties continue to experience power outages. National Grid reported in its most recent update on Tuesday afternoon that 3,886 properties in Devon and 409 in Cornwall remained without electricity. Storm Darragh marked the fourth named storm of the current season, succeeding Storm Ashley, Storm Bert, and Storm Conall. It brought wind gusts reaching speeds of up to 96mph (155km/h). According to National Grid, fallen trees, resulting from the storm’s powerful winds, constituted the primary reason for the persistent supply disruptions. The company further stated that these trees were “causing difficulties accessing sites as well as damage to the network.” Roisin Quinn, the field operations director, commented: “Storm Darragh is the biggest storm our region has faced in decades.” She continued, stating, “Our engineers, control rooms, contact centre and support teams have been working around the clock to maintain power across the network.” Quinn also noted, “We continue to see extremely high volumes of calls to our contact centre and I’m afraid it is taking a little longer for customers to get through.” She concluded by saying, “I want to thank customers for their patience and understanding and assure you all that we are doing everything we can to get power restored across the region as soon as possible.” Reports indicated that winds gusted widely above 70mph (112km/h), even in inland areas. The existing record for the South West remains 118mph (189km/h), recorded at Gwennap Head in Cornwall on 15 December 1979. In Devon, at Paignton Zoo, Storm Darragh caused the destruction of a beech tree estimated to be over 200 years old. The tree sustained damage from the severe gales, subsequently crushing a wooden hut. Paignton Zoo had been closed on Saturday because of the prevailing weather conditions, a decision its management attributed partly to the danger of branches being dislodged from trees. Catherine Mortimer, who serves as the curator of gardens for Wild Planet Trust, the organization that operates Paignton Zoo, stated: “Sadly, with these extreme weather events becoming more common, we expect that we will continue to lose more of these very old trees.” For updates, follow BBC Cornwall and BBC Devon on X, Facebook, and Instagram. Story ideas can be submitted to spotlight@bbc.co.uk. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC disclaims responsibility for the content of external sites. Information regarding its approach to external linking is available.