Storm Bert wreaks havoc on England and Ireland – DW – 23.11.2024

Ireland and Britain were hit by winter storm Bert on Saturday; this storm brought strong winds, heavy rain, snow and ice, which UK forecasters called a “multi-hazard” event.

Severe weather has closed roads, airports, ferry and train routes on both sides of the Irish Sea.

What’s the latest on Storm Bert?

A man was killed when a tree fell on a car on a major motorway near Winchester in southern England, police said.

The second death, which occurred in a traffic accident in West Yorkshire in the north of England, was being investigated by the police to see if the incident was related to the storm. According to the information obtained, the road was not icy at the time of the incident.

Five adults and five children were rescued from a house after a landslide in North Wales, Sky News reported.

Ireland’s weather service has issued a “red status” rain warning (the highest level) for the populous counties of Cork and Galway overnight.

Heavy rain has caused flooding along parts of Ireland’s west coast, leaving some roads impassable. Flood waters were seen rising over parked vehicles in the town of Killybegs in County Donegal.

Storm Bert left at least 60,000 properties across Ireland without power overnight. By Saturday evening, that number had dropped to 11,000. In Britain, around 27,000 homes were without power in northern England.

Meanwhile, in France, tens of thousands of people were left without electricity after Storm Caetano on Thursday.

Hundreds of passengers were stranded on two trains that were stopped for up to 9 hours due to power outages in the west of France on Saturday.

Snow negatively affects road and rail transportation

The heaviest snowfall hit Scotland and northern and central England, with dozens of flood warnings issued and many roads closed.

The National Highways agency has warned of “blizzard conditions” affecting Yorkshire and north-east England.

In its latest snow and ice warning, the UK Met Office said there was a “high likelihood of some rural communities being cut off”.

The Queensferry Crossing, a bridge over the Firth of Forth near Edinburgh, was closed due to falling ice on the carriageway.

Flights were disrupted at Newcastle Airport due to heavy snowfall, and some flights were diverted to Belfast and Edinburgh.

The main operator of rail services between England and Scotland said a large number of trains had been canceled and advised rail users not to travel beyond Preston, a city north of Manchester.

Another rail operator serving western England and Wales has asked passengers to travel west to Basingstoke, about 90 minutes by train from London, if their journey is essential.

Some train services in Scotland have also been cancelled, including the Inverness-Elgin and Aberdeen-Inverurie routes, which are popular with tourists in Scotland.

In Yorkshire, major highways through the Peak District national park were closed due to snow, as well as the motorway from the industrial city of Middlesborough in the northeast to the Lake District.

Further south, ferry operator DFDS canceled sailings due to strong winds in the English Channel, and services from Newhaven and Dover in southern England to Dieppe and Calais in France were severely affected.

mm/lo (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)