Storm Darragh Triggers Power Outages and Travel Interruptions

Storm Darragh is causing travel interruptions and electricity outages for hundreds of residences throughout the North East and Cumbria regions. Northern Powergrid is addressing electricity failures spanning the area, from Teesside up to Northumberland, and indicated that interruptions were anticipated to last until the evening. The A66 highway, connecting Brough and Bowes, has been closed to vehicles with high sides because of intense winds. CrossCountry reported that train services were affected, experiencing both delays and cancellations, and recommended that travelers verify their train schedules prior to departure. LNER announced the repair of a technical issue between Newcastle and Berwick-upon-Tweed, which implies that services heading to Edinburgh are no longer expected to operate at slower speeds. A yellow weather alert for wind continues to be active across England and Wales, valid until 18:00 GMT. A yellow warning for rain in the North East concluded at 09:00 GMT. A spokesperson for Northern Powergrid stated that their crews were “working hard in challenging conditions” to restore electricity to the impacted customers. Additionally, a limited number of residences in Cumbria are experiencing power loss, and Electricity North West reported that the storm had impacted power lines in Eskdale. Flood alerts have been issued throughout the region, and a flood warning remains in effect for the Keswick campsite, located in Cumbria. The Environment Agency has released seven flood alerts within the North East, encompassing areas such as the coastal rivers in North Northumberland, the Tyne and Wear coast, and the Lower River Tees. Previous flood warnings for the vicinity of the River Coquet in Northumberland have since been reduced to alerts. While Cumbria had eight flood alerts on Saturday, this number has decreased to two: one covering the Upper River Derwent, Stonethwaite Beck, and Derwent Water, close to Keswick, and another for the rivers Brathay, Rothay, and Winster at Bowness-on-Windermere. The Windermere ferry service in Cumbria continues to be suspended because of strong winds. National Highways has since reopened the A19 Tees Flyover, located near Middlesbrough, for high-sided and vulnerable vehicles, following its earlier closure attributed to powerful winds. For updates, follow BBC North East and BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor, and Instagram. Story ideas can be submitted to northeastandcumbria@bbc.co.uk. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC disclaims responsibility for the content of external websites. Information regarding our external linking policy is available.