Thousands of homes are without power and schools have been closed as the first named storm of the year hit UK shores.
Storm Austen brought severe conditions to parts of the south-west, with a gust of ۷۶mph recorded at St Mary’s airport on the Isles of Scilly on Friday morning. Just before ۱۱am, more than ۱۶,۰۰۰ homes in the south-west were without power, according to National Grid.
Dozens of schools across Cornwall were forced to open late, while others did not open at all.
Images showed part of Brighton’s West Pier falling into the sea after it was battered by wind and waves. The pier was first opened in ۱۸۶۶ and has grown increasingly derelict since it closed to the public in ۱۹۷۵, with storms and fires destroying much of what remained. English Heritage has previously declared the structure beyond repair.
National Rail reported severe disruption across the rail network with cancellations across England, Wales and Scotland.
Forecasters have put an additional amber weather warning for wind in place from Saturday into Sunday as the second named storm of the year, Boelo, heads in.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, the prime minister, Andy Burnham, warned: “We potentially are facing a winter of greater flooding, so it’s about recognising all of those risks and taking action.”
A government campaign aimed at urging people to stock supplies of food and essentials in case of multi-day emergencies made headlines overnight. Burnham was asked if the government was playing catch-up with civil preparedness as he attended a summit organised to learn from the summer’s record wildfires.
He answered: “No. We are having the conversation with people about being better prepared because we’re living in a world where unexpected events seem to be becoming more and more common.
“We’re in a situation today where the UK is facing storms, and obviously we feel for the people without power in Cornwall right now. It is just having those supplies in the house to get you through those moments [and] we are having that conversation about resilience. That’s why we’re holding this summit today, it’s why we’re putting the guidance out to the public.”
National Grid said engineers had restored power to more than ۱۲,۰۰۰ properties affected by Storm Austen by ۸am on Friday.
A Met Office amber warning for wind covering Cornwall, Devon and the Isles of Scilly was issued on Wednesday, taking effect on Friday from ۱am until ۱۰am.
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It has now issued a ۲۴-hour amber warning for wind from Storm Boelo from ۹pm on Saturday, covering Scotland, the north coast of Northern Ireland, and Cumbria and Northumberland in the north of England.
The forecaster said gusts of up to ۸۰mph could hit exposed coastal areas, with winds of ۶۰-۷۰mph widespread elsewhere, and warned of danger to life from flying debris.
It said there was also a “good chance” of power cuts, damage to buildings, trees being uprooted and rail and flight cancellations.
The Republic of Ireland’s weather agency, Met Éireann, issued six warnings of varying severity for Saturday, mostly affecting counties along the west coast.
