Hundreds of thousands left without power as storm hits

Storm Darragh wreaked havoc across the UK yesterday, with two people killed, flights and trains cancelled and hundreds of thousands of homes left without power.

- BARNEY DAVIS, SIMON CALDER

Winds of up to 96mph battered the country as the fourth named storm of the season caused major disruption, particularly in south Wales and western England, with the threat of more to come today.

A rare Met Office red warning for parts of Wales and southwest England came into effect yesterday morning at 1am, with the powerful winds resulting in a government “risk to life” alert issued to three million people. It was the largest use of the system yet, with people urged to avoid driving and to “stay indoors if you can”.

British Airways cancelled more than 100 shorthaul domestic and European flights from London Heathrow, including multiple flights to and from Paris, Edinburgh, Jersey, Milan, Nice and Vienna, while transatlantic flights from the US were diverted to Brussels.

A major incident was declared by Dyfed-Powys Police in Wales yesterday evening, with the force receiving a huge number of calls about fallen trees and poor driving conditions. The storm also affected other parts of the country. In Longton, near Preston, a man in his forties died after a tree fell onto his van on the A59 dual carriageway in Lancashire.

A dog walker who was first to the scene told The Independent

how he tried to push the tree off the van. Terry Tinker said: “I’ve got a peg leg and a walking stick so I couldn’t do much to help. It was horrible.” The victim’s next of kin have been informed and are being supported by a specially trained officer.

Six hours after the death, a second man died in the storm when a tree fell on his car in Silver Birch Road in Erdington, shortly after 3pm. Sgt Benjamin Parsons said: “Our thoughts are with the man’s family at this time, and his next of kin have been informed.