Storm Arwen: All houses without power to be reconnected by tomorrow, says Boris Johnson

6 December 2021, 18:36 | Updated: 6 December 2021, 20:13

Boris Johnson has said all houses that are still without power after Storm Arwen battered the UK will be reconnected by tomorrow at the latest.

"This afternoon I spoke to Phil Jones, the CEO of Northern Powergrid, to discuss the continuing disruption as a result of Storm Arwen as well as their preparations for Storm Barra," said the Prime Minister in a tweet.

"I expressed my concern that more than 1,000 homes are still without power and was assured they would be reconnected tomorrow at the latest."

He also said he had sought reassurances that there would be minimal disruption from Storm Barra, which is due to hit the UK tomorrow.

"I also asked for assurances that the energy supply companies were putting in place measures to limit any potential further disruption to households as a result of Storm Barra," said Mr Johnson.

"I am grateful for the continuing work of emergency teams and volunteers who are working tirelessly to restore power to the remaining homes and welcome Ofgem’s review into the response to Arwen."

Local residents share how they are preparing for Storm Barra

There are concerns that Storm Barra could cause similar problems to Storm Arwen, or hamper the country's recovery.

Audrey Malarkey, a resident of Rothbury in Northumberland, said she and her partner Thomas had purchased a camping stove in case they lost power again.

"We're really worried about it happening again," said Ms Malarkey.

"We've bought a camping stove in the hope that we can at least heat a hot water bottle up and have a hot drink if it happens again."

Read more: Storm Arwen: All houses without power to be reconnected by tomorrow, says Boris Johnson

Read more: Storm Barra: How to stay safe and protect your home during a storm

Recounting their three days without power, she said: "In the end, what we had to do was just drive around to keep warm in the car.

"That was the only way we could do anything, was drive around to keep warm until it came back on, get warm and then go under a quilt or something to keep the heat.

"But when you can't have nothing but a sandwich or a warm drink or something like that it's a bit much."

James O'Brien speaks about Storm Arwen

Thousands of homes were left without power after Storm Arwen battered the UK at the end of November.

The military was drafted in to help the 9,200 homes that were still without power on Friday evening.

Residents across the north-east of England and Scotland were worst affected.

Storm Barra is set to hit the UK tomorrow, with Brits told to prepare for heavy rain, strong winds and snow.