- 7,000 electricity customers without power in Northern Ireland, and another 3,500 in north-west England
- Nearly 900 homes also lose electricity in South Wales after a high-voltage electrical cable is blown down
- Air France and Ryanair aeroplanes seen landing sideways at Bristol Airport in dramatic videos and images
- Environment Agency has put in place 25 flood warnings and 117 flood alerts across England and Wales
- Republic of Ireland also affected as 23-year-old woman dies when tree falls on her car in Co Westmeath
- Stoke City’s football match against Manchester United temporarily suspended due to heavy rain and hail
- Games had to be abandoned in second half in both Sheffield and Crawley due to waterlogged pitches
- Man, 19, left with facial wounds after falling tree smashes car windscreen on A45 road in Warwickshire
- Unsuccessful search for man, 45, who fell overboard from a small cargo ship moored on the River Trent
Strong downpours and winds were battering Britain this morning, leaving thousands without power and disrupting football matches, roads and railways.
Gusts of up to 90mph were forecast for Northern Ireland and north-west Scotland overnight, with torrential weather making its way down into England.
Storms caused by an Atlantic depression left 7,000 electricity customers without power in Northern Ireland and another 3,500 in north-west England.
Air France and Ryanair aeroplanes were pictured landing sideways at Bristol Airport as the UK was hit by winds yesterday that reached up to 75mph.
The top speed was recorded at Castlederg in Northern Ireland, with a Met Office amber weather warning for the area as well as western Scotland.
Take cover! Peter Crouch of Stoke City reacts as heavy rain falls and play is halted during his side’s Capital One Cup Quarter Final match against Manchester United
Nearly 900 homes also lost electricity in the Neath Valley in South Wales, after a high-voltage electrical cable was blown down at around 6pm.
Northern Ireland Electricity and Electricity North West said some could be without power overnight. Western Power was also working to restore power.
An NIE spokesman said: ‘We are expecting the winds to peak in the early hours of the morning, causing additional disruption to electricity supplies.’
At 11pm NIE said 1,000 customers remained without power, but added that it expected further damage and more power cuts throughout the night.
Thousands were affected in the Republic of Ireland, where a 23-year-old woman died when a tree fell on her car near Mullingar in County Westmeath.
The Environment Agency had 25 flood warnings in place just after midnight in England and Wales, with flooding expected and immediate action required.
Warnings were concentrated across the South West, Wales and the North-West. There were also 117 flood alerts, with flooding possible.
Wednesday night football fixtures were hit, with a Sky Bet Championship football match in Sheffield abandoned when heavy rain left the pitch unplayable.
Sheffield Wednesday’s home match against Wigan, at Hillsborough, was called off early in the second half after large puddles appeared on the pitch.
Stoke City’s home quarter-final tie against Manchester United in the Capital One League Cup was temporarily suspended due to heavy rain and hail.
Referee Mark Clattenburg briefly pulled players off the Britannia Stadium’s pitch, but play was resumed shortly afterwards and United went on to win 2-0.
And the FA Cup second round replay between Crawley Town and Bristol Rovers was abandoned in the second half because of a waterlogged pitch.
Debris caused havoc on roads and railways, seeing a man to be taken to hospital with head and chest injuries after the car he was travelling in was hit.
The falling tree smashed the windscreen and left the front passenger, a 19-year-old man, with facial wounds, West Midlands Ambulance Service said.
He was anaesthetised at the scene and taken to hospital. Another passenger, a man in his 50s, and the male driver received minor injuries.
The accident happened at about 6pm on the A45, between Stretton-on-Dunsmore and Rugby, in Warwickshire.
An ambulance spokesman said: ‘The driver of the car was also taken to the same hospital as a precaution.’
Police closed the A595 at Moota in Cumbria after the roof was blown off a hotel, with motorists asked to avoid the area.
A roof blew off another property in Seaton and disruption due to trees blocking roads was reported in Whitehaven and Hackthorpe.
There were also delays for train passengers across parts of the South West.
South West Trains reported problems due to trees on the track near Sherborne in Dorset and on a train between Exeter and Axeminster in Devon.
Also, a South West service hit a fallen tree in the New Forest last night at about 9pm near Hinton Admiral on the Brockenhurst to Bournemouth route.
Last night, coastguards and an RAF helicopter were involved in an unsuccessful search for a missing sailor in conditions described as ‘very poor’.
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency said a 45-year-old man fell overboard from a small cargo ship moored on the River Trent in North Lincolnshire.
A spokesman said the man was working with ropes on the MV Sea Melody when he appeared to become entangled and was pulled over the side.
A helicopter from RAF Leconfield in East Yorkshire began a search with an infra-red camera and a coastguard team from Hull was also mobilised.
The spokesman said weather conditions in the area were very poor with gale force winds, and cold, driving rain.
Humber Coastguard watch manager Mike Puplett said: ‘We understand that the crewman was not wearing a life jacket.
‘In these conditions particularly, I would say this should have been an essential bare minimum of safety equipment.
‘We have now stood the search down for the night, and will continue searching during tomorrow.’
Forecasters said snow is possible today in the South-West, but it is unlikely to settle at lower levels, and there is a risk of strong gales in exposed areas.
Devon was particularly badly hit yesterday, with 70mph gusts reported by Dartmoor Zoo and the Higher Ferry at Dartmouth was closed due to high winds.
The council was urging people to travel with care and said road surfaces could also drop below freezing, adding that gritters would be out on the roads.
Meanwhile a kite surfer was pictured braving mountainous seas whipped up by the high winds in front of Old Harry Rocks near Bournemouth, Dorset.
And a sobbing young woman seen walking along a seafront in a pink dressing gown was last night at the centre of a major police search in Hampshire.
The young woman vanished after being spotted close to the water’s edge in Beachlands on Hayling Island by a concerned passer-by, who alerted police.
A police spokesman said: ‘We are making an urgent appeal for information about a report of a missing woman in the Hayling Island area.’
PACKED ROADS AND DISRUPTED RAIL SERVICES FOR THE GREAT FESTIVE GETAWAY
Christmas travellers will have to contend with packed roads and disrupted rail services as families gear up for the great festive getaway.
With an estimated £2billion being spent on travel to friends and families this Christmas, motoring organisations are predicting that 13million will take to the roads from December 24 to 26.
With major engineering projects taking place over the festive period, rail passengers are facing line closures, reduced services and buses replacing trains on a number of routes.
Ryanair is carrying a record 3million passengers from December 20 to January 6, while Gatwick Airport will handle an estimated 2million travellers between December 13 and January 5.
Santander bank said travellers would be spending an average of £41 on petrol or diesel over Christmas, while rail travellers will fork out an average of £73 and bus and coach travellers will pay an average of £59.
The RAC said that on Christmas Eve an estimated 4.3million vehicles will take to the roads, with 3.7million out on Christmas Day and 4.1million on Boxing Day.
Traffic information company Inrix said the busiest time on the roads was likely to be from noon to 5pm on Friday, with the M25 being the most congested spot.
Inrix warned that journey times could triple at the busiest festive time, with shopping areas being particularly busy this weekend and again on Friday December 27.
Car company Kia predicted that the average family car will be driven 413 miles over Christmas, with a survey of 2,000 motorists showing that 10 per cent make more than 11 trips to stock up on festive food.
For rail travellers, essential engineering work means the axing of all Gatwick Express services from Christmas Day to the end of New Year’s Day.
This extensive work will also affect services operated by the First Capital Connect (FCC), First Great Western (FGW) and Southern train companies. Certain trains will not run over the festive period, with bus replacement services operating on some routes.
Engineering work is taking place between Paddington station in London and Slough in Berkshire from December 27 to January 3. This will mean disruption to some FGW services, while some Heathrow Express services will be affected from December 30 to January 1.
FGW passengers will also have to put up with engineering work between Oxford and Hanborough from December 27 to 29, while FGW services and those run by the CrossCountry are being disrupted by engineering work between Reading and Basingstoke from December 27 to 30.
FGW passengers will have to use buses instead of trains between Maidenhead and Marlow from December 27 to 29 due to engineering work, while FGW services will also be disrupted from December 29 to January 3 by engineering work between Reading and Didcot Parkway.
A major £19million upgrade at Gravesend station in Kent will mean the Southeastern company will not be able to run any trains from or through Gravesend between December 22 and January 5. Buses will replace the Gravesend trains.
The Gravesend work will also affect Southeastern’s high-speed services.
Engineering work between Retford and Lincoln and between Gainsborough Lea Road and Lincoln will mean buses replace trains between Doncaster/Retford and Lincoln from December 21 to January 5.
From December 23 to 27 there will be engineering work between Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Airport stations with lines closed at various times. Buses will replace trains on some routes during this time.
There is also engineering work in the Manchester Victoria area which will affect Northern Rail services between December 27 and January 1.
Engineering work from December 28 to 30 will mean East Midlands Trains passengers will have to take buses instead of trains between Spalding and Sleaford in Lincolnshire.
Buses will replace trains on parts of London Overground between December 23 and 27 due to engineering work between Surrey Quays and New Cross Gate/New Cross.
Platforms 1-9 will be closed at London’s Waterloo station from December 27 to 29, causing disruptions to services by South West Trains.
FCC said it will not have any services running between Gatwick Airport and East Croydon from December 27 to January 1, and journey times will be extended by 70-90 minutes.
The company added that FCC passengers travelling between Gatwick and London Bridge or Blackfriars will be asked to take a bus between Gatwick Airport and East Grinstead and a Southern service between East Grinstead and East Croydon.
Of the Victoria, Gatwick and Surrey disruptions, Network Rail Sussex route managing director Tim Robinson said: ‘These are three significant infrastructure upgrades which have been carefully planned to take place at the same time to keep disruption to a minimum.’
Michael Roberts, director-general of rail industry body the Rail Delivery Group, said of the engineering projects: ‘A great deal of care goes into minimising the impact of this vital work and to keep people on trains wherever possible.
‘By planning ahead, the vast majority of passengers travelling by rail over the festive period can expect to travel without disruption.’
Some good news for rail travellers is that there will be a few services on Boxing Day. The Chiltern company will be running trains on December 26 for the first time.
Its service will operate for around 12 hours, with the first train northbound from London to Bicester North at 8.15am and the last to Princes Risborough at 6.45pm.
Southbound, the first train will run from High Wycombe to Marylebone station in London at 8.29am and the last will run from Bicester North to Marylebone at 6.57pm.
Also, Southeastern will be running some high-speed services between Ashford in Kent and St Pancras International station in London on Boxing Day.Trains will operate on a half-hourly basis from 8am to 8pm, with free car parking provided at Ashford and Ebbsfleet in north Kent.
On the Tube there is track replacement work at Earl’s Court in west London over the festive period. There will be part closures on the District and Jubilee lines between December 27 and 30, while a section of the Northern line will be shut on December 28 and 29.
The London Congestion Charge for vehicles will be suspended from Christmas Day to the end of New Year’s Day.
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