Storm Goretti brought ‘danger to life’ 100mph winds and left a trail of destruction in multiple parts of Britain as forecasters warned the effects will continue to be felt into the weekend
Storm Goretti has left thousands of people facing power cuts, school closures and travel chaos – while new images show the aftermath of the ‘multi-hazard’ weather event.
The storm brought winds of almost 100mph after forecasters issued a rare red warning for ‘danger to life’ winds in the South West.
More than 40,000 properties were without power in the South West just before 2pm on Friday, according to the National Grid’s website, and about 9,000 had no power in the West Midlands. More than 700 had no power in the East Midlands, and over 200 were without power in Wales.
Number 10 said support was being offered to homes left without power. A spokesman said: “Around 0.21% of British customers are without power. Engineers and staff are working to reconnect them as quickly as possible. The latest numbers I have is approximately 150,000 customers have had their power restored so far.”
The Met Office said on Friday that Storm Goretti “continues to cause problems” as a mixture of rain, sleet and snow batters some areas. Forecasters had recorded 15cm of snow at Lake Vyrnwy in Powys, 7cm at Preston Montford in Shropshire and 7cm in Nottingham.
Notable snow accumulations continue in Scotland, with 27cm at Altnaharra in Sutherland, 26cm at Loch Glascarnoch and 22cm at Durris in Kincardineshire.
The lowest temperature recorded overnight was minus 13.3C at Braemar, Aberdeenshire, while a peak gust of 99mph was reported at St Marys on the Isles of Scilly, the highest here since 1991, according to the Met Office.
