First storm of season brings day of disruption
Penzance CouncilThousands of homes were left without power, trains cancelled and schools shut as Storm Austen hit the South West and Channel Islands.
A red weather warning for wind was issued for the Channel Islands, with gusts of 84mph (135km/h) recorded at Jersey Airport just before 06:00 BST. Gusts of 76mph were recorded in the Isles of Scilly.
In Cornwall highway teams responded to about 250 emergencies, including 150 reports of fallen trees, while similar issues also arose in Devon.
There was travel disruption across the region with train lines blocked in several places and flights cancelled.
Penzance CouncilAt its peak more than 13,000 properties were affected by power cuts in Cornwall.
The high winds also saw all schools in Jersey and Guernsey closed for the day, while schools in Cornwall either opened late or closed their doors completely.
Great Western Railway said there were multiple cancellations to the network, including between Penzance and Taunton.
Hot on the heels of Storm Austen, the first named storm of the season, is Storm Boelo.
Wet and windy weather is expected to continue across the UK on Saturday, with alerts in place in Scotland, Northern Ireland and the north of England.
A number of businesses and attractions will remain closed across the South West over the weekend, with visitors urged to check their plans ahead of time.
James Spiers, who started the coastal path in June, has been camping but booked into a hostel in Perranporth because of the storm.
"I didn't want to risk damaging the tent," he said.
"If this winter ends like last winter it could just be persistent rain and storms... I need to be doing a lot more forward planning now for the winter. "
Renouard Le Maistre, from Jonathan Le Maistre Tree Surgery, said it was a "really busy" morning as they cleared roads and removed trees which had fallen on power lines.
"Calls keep coming in and we're keeping busy," he said.
"Hopefully not too much [damage] and hopefully we can retain some trees.
"We're just thinning out the dangerous ones currently and getting through it."
Dan Heath, manager of the Turning Tides Project in Crediton, Devon, was among those affected by train disruption.
"A lot of people don't have access to cars or can't access the bus so they access the train," he said.
The vulnerable and elderly members of storm-hit communities have been at the forefront of concern for care services across the South West.
Evie Drew and her fellow carers based around Truro and Falmouth, Cornwall, found rural roads closed by fallen trees so had to help cover each others' clients, including many who had suffered power cuts.
"That's why it's been extra important that we make sure that our clients have the appropriate equipment around them," she said.
"They need enough food, enough fluids and we're ensuring they have their correct medication.
Andy Burnham said that in the UK we "potentially are facing a winter of greater flooding" as he answered a question on preparedness.
The prime minister said "we're living in a world where unexpected events seem to be becoming more and more common".
"Obviously weather events – and 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," he added.
