Man in Ireland dies as Storm Eunice unleashes record-breaking gust and causes damage and disruption across UK
by 0 by 0 A man has been killed and another person was seriously injured in separate incidents as Storm Eunice struck across the UK and Ireland, bringing widespread damage, destruction and record-breaking winds.
Millions of people had been urged to stay indoors on Friday as a result of the extreme weather sparking safety fears.
A council worker aged in his 60s died in County Wexford, Ireland, after he was hit by a falling tree, while another member of the public was seriously hurt after being struck by flying debris from a roof in Henley-on-Thames, according to police.
Latest updates as Storm Eunice sweeps UK
Storm Eunice has so far left more than 110,000 homes without power, many of them in the South West of England, and forced schools and businesses to shut, as well as causing damage to buildings.
The high winds have also seen:
A wind gust of 122mph was recorded at The Needles on the Isle of Wight in what is thought to be a new record for England, the Met Office said.
Until now the record for a low-level location in England, had been 118mph at Gwennap Head in Cornwall on 15 December 1979.
The strongest gust ever recorded in the UK was 173mph at Cairngorm summit in the Highlands of Scotland in 1986.
Meanwhile, London Fire Brigade declared a “major incident” due to the volume of 999 calls over Storm Eunice and the London Ambulance Service (LAS) said it was “responding to a high volume of calls”, and asked people to only call in the event of a serious medical emergency.
The Met Office’s red weather warning affecting the South West of England and South Wales ended at midday, while a second expired at 3pm for the East of England and London.
But a separate amber weather warning is also in place for gusts across England until 9pm, as well as yellow warnings for snow in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Check the weather forecast in your area
The storm’s impact is also likely to stretch beyond Friday, with further disruption to travel and more weather warnings issued for Saturday.
On Friday, the Met Office also took the unusual step of issuing a severe weather alert with National Highways for strong winds covering the whole of the country’s strategic road network, pointing out that lorries and other “vulnerable” vehicles such as caravans and motorbikes could be blown over.
High winds forced both the M4 Prince of Wales Bridge and M48 Severn Bridge into Wales to close to traffic for what it believed to be the first time in history.
Train operators across Britain urged passengers to avoid travelling on Friday as emergency 50mph speed limits were in place in many areas, with no trains operating in Wales at all.
P&O Ferries suspended all sailings between Dover and Calais, while dozens of flights were cancelled and hundreds delayed across UK airports.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson wrote on Twitter: “We should all follow the advice and take precautions to keep safe.
“I thank responders for all their efforts.”
A list of the main closures due to Storm Eunice
Home Office minister Damian Hinds said the Army is on “high readiness stand-by” to help.
He told Sky News: “We are strongly encouraging people to take precautions and make sure they stay safe.”
The COBRA emergency committee was due to meet to discuss the response to the storm.
Across Ireland, more than 55,000 homes, farms and businesses were left without power in Ireland on Friday, as Storm Eunice battered the country, with numerous reports of fallen trees blocking roads.
Meanwhile, the Environment Agency has now downgraded 10 severe flood warnings, meaning there was a danger to life, as well as dozens of flood warnings and more than 100 flood alerts.
It said Eunice had “not resulted in the significant impact initially forecast”.
It comes days after Storm Dudley left tens of thousands of homes without power and disrupted travel services.
Friday’s extreme weather also disrupted half-term plans for thousands of families, with major attractions including the London Eye, Legoland and Chessington World of Adventures confirming they will be closed on Friday.
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The Met Office has issued a less-severe yellow wind warning for much of the south coast of England and south Wales on Saturday, which it said “could hamper recovery efforts from Storm Eunice”.
There is also a warning of ice for most of Scotland, the North of England and Northern Ireland.
