Storm Austen brings 80mph winds, leaving 7,000 homes without power

Storm Austen battered Britain with wind gusts reaching 80mph and torrential rain, forcing schools to close, disrupting air and rail services and leaving thousands of properties without electricity.

The severe weather brought widespread travel disruption, with drivers in several areas advised to avoid unnecessary journeys as flooding and fallen trees made some roads impassable.

South-west England bore the brunt of the storm. Almost 7,000 homes across Cornwall lost power, with the Penzance area among the worst affected locations.

Several schools in Cornwall either shut for the day or delayed opening to protect pupils and staff. On Jersey, the Government ordered every school and college to close.

The strongest winds recorded during the morning reached 76mph on both the Isles of Scilly and Guernsey. Gusts of 72mph were measured in Jersey, while Culdrose in Cornwall recorded 71mph.

Authorities in Devon and Cornwall urged people to travel only when essential after reports of overturned vans, uprooted trees, damaged power lines and debris blocking roads.

FlightRadar24 data showed 19 cancellations at London Heathrow, 17 at Gatwick, 13 at Southampton and four at Exeter. At Jersey Airport, a red wind warning led to the cancellation of all morning departures and arrivals, affecting 25 services.

Austen, the first named storm of the season, is expected to move east into the North Sea tonight. Another low-pressure system, Storm Boelo, is forecast to arrive tomorrow.

Weather experts monitoring both storms in the Atlantic say Austen and Boelo are undergoing explosive cyclogenesis, a rapidly intensifying process commonly known as a “weather bomb”.

A low-pressure system is classified as a weather bomb when its central pressure drops by at least 24 millibars over a 24-hour period.

Met Office senior operational meteorologist Marco Petagna said Austen met that benchmark after its pressure plunged from 1,004mb to 980mb in only 18 hours. Boelo is expected to intensify even more sharply, falling from 999mb to 948mb within 24 hours—a 51mb decline.

The Met Office said Boelo’s deep low-pressure centre will be strengthened by an active jet stream as the system travels across the Atlantic towards Northern Ireland.

As the season’s first named storm, Austen was forecast to produce gusts as high as 80mph in parts of south-west England, with widespread winds of between 60mph and 70mph across the region.

An amber wind warning issued by the Met Office covered Cornwall, Devon and the Isles of Scilly from 1am until 10am.

Periods of heavy rain accompanied the powerful winds, although forecasters expected gusts to gradually weaken as the day progressed.

The forecaster said Storm Austen is ‘likely to bring some disruption and possible damaging winds’ and warned of disruption on the roads and public transport networks.

Flying debris is ‘likely’, and the storm will ‘probably’ bring some damage to buildings, such as tiles blown from roofs, it added.

In coastal areas, large waves could pose a danger to life, as well as beach debris being thrown onto coastal roads, sea fronts and properties.

Mobile phone coverage and the power supply could also be affected, the Met Office said.

Chief forecaster Neil Armstrong said: ‘This is the first stormy weather in the south of the UK this season and we expect some disruption as it moves through.

‘With trees in leaf, it is likely fallen branches and trees could obstruct roads and railways so take extra care on the Friday morning commute.’

Over the weekend, Storm Boelo will affect Northern Ireland, Scotland and parts of northern England with what the forecaster described as ‘impactful winds’.

Yellow weather warnings have been issued for the whole of mainland Scotland, the Western Isles, Orkney and the far north of England from 6pm tomorrow to 9pm on Sunday.

There will be ‘widespread gusts’ of 55 to 65mph widely, with these reaching up to 70 to 80mph in more exposed coastal locations, the Met Office added.

Network Rail Scotland said trains will be slowed down today and over the weekend to keep people safe in the areas expected to see the heaviest rain.

Craig Gorman, head of operational weather strategy at Network Rail Scotland, said: ‘We can’t control the weather, but we can make sure we’re as ready as possible for whatever it brings.

‘A big part of our job is staying one step ahead. We’re constantly looking at how the forecast is developing and what that could mean for different parts of the railway, allowing us to make the right decisions at the right time.

‘We know any disruption from these storms will be frustrating, particularly as it’s the weekend, but we’ll do everything we can to keep people moving wherever it’s safe to do so.’

Early today, Southern Rail announced a lightning strike at Normans Bay prevented trains from stopping at the station.

Elsewhere, National Rail said the weather warning meant fewer trains would call at Ryde Pier Head until 6pm today.

The operator also said a number of services in the North of England will be changed throughout the day today, advising passengers to plan ahead.

Some services between Leeds and York via Harrogate will not stop at Weeton or Headingley, while trains between York and Blackpool North will skip New Pudsey.

A separate yellow warning, covering Northern Ireland from 6pm tomorrow to 3pm on Sunday, is due to predicted winds of 50 to 60mph, with up to 65 to 75mph in exposed regions.

Forecasters have also issued a yellow warning for wind across a large area of south west England and Wales, running from 10pm last night through to 5pm today – with gusts predicted to reach up to 45 to 55mph.

Another yellow weather warning for large parts of England, the North West and North Wales is in place from 10am today until 9pm this evening.

Heavy rain is expected today, as Storm Austen tracks eastwards throughout the day.

It will be heaviest in southern and eastern Scotland, where a yellow weather warning has been issued from 7am this morning to midnight tonight.

Accumulations of 20 to 40mm are expected within the warning area throughout this time, with 60 to 80mm possible in some locations, the Met Office said.

This could bring flooding and travel disruption in a few places.

One flood warning, meaning flooding is expected, remained in place for the South Devon coast at Beesands, Torcross, Slapton and Dawlish

Eight other flood alerts – meaning flooding is possible – were in place across England.

People were advised by the Met Office to stay away from cliff edges and well back from stormy seas that could ‘sweep you off your feet’.

Homeowners were told to take steps to protect their property from damage and other people from injury, such as checking for loose items outside and planning how to secure them in high winds.

These items include bins, plant pots, garden furniture, trampolines and sheds.

Garth Smith, head of resilience at the British Red Cross, has encouraged the public to take steps to protect themselves, their families and their homes.

He said: ‘We have practical advice that can make a real difference – from checking in with people who may be more vulnerable, securing loose items in your garden to checking windows and doors, and making an evacuation plan for your household, including pets.

‘We also urge people to keep an eye on local weather reports and guidance from local authorities.’

Ross Macleod, the RNLI’s water safety manager, has asked people not to take ‘unnecessary risks’ when visiting the coast.

He said: ‘If you plan to visit the coast or a waterside location, we urge you stay a safe distance from the water as conditions could knock you off your feet or wash you into the sea.’

The forecast comes a week after severe drought was declared in parts of England, amid concerns over dwindling reservoirs because of extremely dry conditions.

The South East and South West have experienced their driest April to September for more than a century – affecting reservoirs in those areas, according to officials.

As a result, ‘severe drought’ – in which a lack of water affects daily life and the environment in major ways, and can have extensive effects – has been declared in parts of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, East Sussex and West Sussex.

But supercharged El Nino conditions in the Pacific which affect weather across the world will put the UK at greater risk of a wet stormy autumn overall, forecasters say.

The Met Office storm year runs from September to August, with each 12-month period having its own alphabetical list of names that are used to label successive storms.

This year’s list begins with Austen and continues with Boelo, Chloe, Dano and Evelyn, ending at W with Wende.

Storm naming is a partnership between the Met Office, Ireland’s Met Éireann and the Dutch service KNMI.

Met Éireann selected the name for the first storm in honour of Austen Nagle, the Irish Meteorological Service’s first director.

KNMI picked names from more than 3,000 suggestions submitted by the public, including Boelo – a nearly extinct name from the east Groningen region that has been passed down through the nominator’s family for generations.

Greenpeace climate campaigner Maja Darlington has called on the Government to act to stop a ‘doomloop of extreme weather’, after a summer of wildfires and drought.

She said: ‘We’ve barely cooled off from a summer of blistering heat, and now the first winter storms are battering at the front door.

‘While millions of people face the prospect of ruined homes and businesses, oil giants are preparing to announce multi-billion-pound profits next week.’

‘The Government must take a stand against this doomloop of extreme weather and corporate impunity,’ Ms Darlington added.