Thousands face days without power as second storm of weekend batters UK

29 January 2022, 14:49 | Updated: 31 January 2022, 07:18

House's roof blown off in Gateshead during Storm Malik

Thousands of people left without electricity after Storm Malik may not be reconnected until Tuesday, as the second storm of the weekend hits the UK.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon warned the damage from Storm Corrie is likely to be "significant", with wind speeds of up to 90mph expected to hit parts of Scotland and the north of England.

"There are amber/yellow @metoffice warnings in place for all of Scotland as Storm Corrie sets in - please heed the warnings and take care. Impacts from the storm are likely to be significant tonight & into tomorrow," said the First Minister in a tweet.

"Work to repair the damage from Storm Malik continues. Tens of thousands have had power reconnected already - however, many will remain off supply again tonight and some, especially in north east, could be off into Tuesday. Welfare arrangements are in place."

Most of northern Scotland has an ice warning in place today and there is a separate weather warning for wind covering parts of North East England.

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The Met Office, which warned that "damaging gusts of wind are possible later today and overnight into Monday morning", said Storm Corrie is set to bring gusts of up to 90mph in exposed coastal locations in northern Scotland, and 70-80mph gusts in the north.

It is set to move eastwards across Scotland on Sunday and push across the North Sea in the early hours of Monday.

There are ice warnings covering Grampian, Highlands and Eilean Siar, Strathclyde and Fife on Monday.

Wind warnings state that "flying debris is likely and could lead to injuries or danger to life", while there may be some damage to trees and buildings, which could include tiles that have blown from roofs.

Power companies said around 34,000 customers were still without supplies across the north of England and Scotland on Sunday after the devastating strong winds of Storm Malik a day earlier.

Winds topping 100mph were recorded in parts of Scotland on Saturday, with one meteorologist claiming to have seen speeds of 147mph at Cairngorm summit in the Scottish Highlands. 

The chaotic storm wreaked havoc on the roads, tearing a roof off a house in Gateshead and blocking major routes.

Around 80,000 customers have been affected by power cuts and up to 16,000 customers are still without power, with some facing the prospect of remaining disconnected for the rest of the weekend.

Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) said Storm Malik caused "significant damage" to its network and had left around 18,000 customers without supply as of 11am on Sunday.

SSEN warned the double blow of storms Malik and Corrie could mean that some customers, particularly those in rural Aberdeenshire, may have to wait until early next week before supply problems are fixed.

Boy, nine, and woman, 60, killed by falling trees as Storm Malik batters UK

Tragically, two people died in the storms on Saturday - a 60-year-old woman and a boy, aged 9.

Staffordshire Police said they were called at 1pm on Saturday to reports a tree had fallen on a man and a young boy.

"Police received a report at 1pm this afternoon (Saturday 29 January) that a tree had fallen on a boy and a man, in an area close to Hollington Road, Winnothdale, near to the village of Tean," said the force in a statement.

"The man and the boy were taken to the Royal Stoke University Hospital.

"Sadly, despite the best efforts of medical staff, a nine-year-old boy passed away."

The force added that the man remains in hospital.

Earlier, at around 10:30am, officers from Police Scotland were called to Deveron Road in Aberdeen where a 60-year-old woman was killed by an uprooted tree.

Northern Powergrid said those affected by power outages are living in Northumberland and County Durham and warned that some people will be without power on Sunday as Storm Corrie is expected to bring another blast of strong winds.

Gusts of up to 90mph are expected in exposed coastal locations in northern Scotland, and gusts of 70-80mph gusts in the north, according to the Met Office.

Chief Met Office meteorologist Dan Suri said the new storm will bring "very strong winds" when it hits on Sunday evening.

He said: "Storm Corrie will bring very strong winds to the north of the UK, especially northern Scotland, on Sunday. This follows just one day after Storm Malik moves though also bringing a spell of very strong winds.

"Storm Corrie will bring gusts of up to 90mph in exposed coastal locations in northern Scotland, with 70-80mph gusts more widely in the north."

Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland's First Minister, issued an urgent warning on Twitter.

"Impact of Storm #Malik is severe," the First Minister tweeted.

"Power companies working hard to restore supply ASAP but many SSEN customers, esp in (north east) may be without power over weekend.

"Importance of welfare support and good communication stressed."

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She said that Storm Corrie "may be more severe for parts of Scotland".

"Unfortunately as #Malik subsides, Storm #Corrie is about to hit from late tomorrow afternoon & may be more severe for parts of Scotland - eg Highlands, Grampian, Tayside than anticipated," she said.

"Please follow @metoffice for any updates to the weather warnings in place."

Residents in the west end of Glasgow were also evacuated from their homes over fears the high winds had exacerbated existing structural issues with the towers of Old Trinity College.

A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said it would likely be "considerably longer than 24 hours" before residents could return home.

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Public transport has also been affected, with train operator Cross Country suspending running services between Newcastle and Edinburgh because of blocked lines on Saturday.

The roads are also risky, with Northumbria Police sharing a picture showing the remains of a van that blew across the A19 in strong winds.

Photos shared on social media show fallen trees in Silverknowes, Edinburgh.

Meteorologist for the Scottish broadcaster STV Sean Batty tweeted on Saturday: "Had an extreme gust of 147mph recorded on the Cairngorm summit an hour ago.

"This is an incredible strength, but still a way off from the record of 173mph recorded back in 1986."

Disruption is expected to continue until Monday, with weather warnings in place.