Storm Eunice: man killed by falling tree in Ireland as England sees 122mph winds – latest updates | UK news

Here is the dramatic moment a tree collapsed onto a railway line in Beattock, Scotland earlier today…

Network Rail Scotland said in a tweet: “Here’s what we’re up against. This is the moment the tree fell on to the railway at Beattock, damaging our overhead lines.”

Here is some good news for those of you still hoping to order in your Friday night takeaways.

News just in from my colleague Sarah Butler: JustEat and UberEats said they were restarting services on Friday afternoon as weather warnings were downgraded.

Three people have been admitted to hospital after a collision between a car and a fallen tree in Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire, during Storm Eunice.

Emergency services were called to Farleigh Wick at 12.20pm and all three occupants of the vehicle were rescued by the fire service, Avon and Somerset Police said.

The driver is in a serious condition, the force said.

The road is expected to remain closed for several hours and motorists are asked to avoid the area, PA Media reported.

Meanwhile, the Environment Agency’s executive director of operations, John Curtin, said approximately 18,000 homes had been protected by flood defences during Storm Eunice.

Speaking to reporters beside demountable defences along the River Severn in Bewdley, Worcestershire, Curtin said:

With Storm Eunice our biggest concern was the tidal risk. We had high tides, plus Storm Eunice pushing a surge up.

It hit the South West first, it’s now rolling across the south coast… but luckily our defences have held it back and we think about 18,000 homes have been protected by Environment Agency defences.

A person has been killed in Amsterdam, Netherlands, after being hit by a falling tree, Reuters news agency has reported.

Meanwhile, parts of the roof of the ADO Den Haag football club stadium were blown off as Storm Eunice battered the Netherlands on Friday, Dutch authorities said.

Here is a video from Twitter of the stadium roof.

The Port of Dover has reopened to shipping and some ferry services after closing earlier on Friday due to Storm Eunice.

A spokesperson said: “The port and ferry operators will now continue to work together to ensure that services are running with minimal disruption.”

Meanwhile, the M4 Prince of Wales Bridge over the River Severn has reopened, but the M48 Severn Bridge crossing remains closed.

“This bridge requires a more detailed inspection than its newer counterpart and we still require wind speeds to drop further before this can be done,” a spokesman for the Severn Crossings said.

A tower at a power station appears to have collapsed amid fierce winds.

Grain Power Station in Kent has been taken offline after one of its three stacks is believed to have toppled.

Uniper UK, which owns the gas-fired power station, told PA Media there have been no casualties and there is no risk to the local community.

Pictures on social media appear to show significant damage to Grain Power Station, with one of the plant’s three towers broken near its base.

The £500 million power station, located just over a mile from the coast, has operational capacity of 1,275 megawatts – enough to supply one million homes.

Good afternoon. I’m Tom Ambrose and I’ll be bringing you all the latest Storm Eunice news over the next few hours.

Let’s start with the news that the National Theatre has cancelled its performance of Wuthering Heights as Storm Eunice brings disruption to the live sector.

Shows by comedian Joe Lycett and immersive production company Secret Cinema planned for Friday night have also been scrapped at short notice, PA Media reported.

The National Theatre on London’s South Bank said it was “sorry to announce” its stage adaptation of the 1847 novel by Emily Brontë would not take place on Friday.

“We’re so sorry for the inconvenience and plan to resume performances on 19 Feb,” the theatre tweeted.

The stand-up comic and presenter Lycett said he was “trapped in London” and unable to travel to Birmingham for his show at the Midlands Arts Centre.

He added on Twitter: “The new date is 1st March and they should be in touch with ticket holders soon. Stay safe everyone!”

Secret Cinema said it had cancelled its Bridgerton-inspired show, which had been due to take place at a “stunning indoor ballroom in Wembley” on Friday night.

“Due to severe weather conditions and following the Government advice to stay at home, we have to cancel tonight’s show of Secret Bridgerton Ball to ensure the safety of our customers and staff,” a statement said.

Here is a brief summary of today’s Storm Eunice developments as I hand over to my colleague Tom Ambrose.

• A council worker was killed by a falling tree while clearing debris caused by Storm Eunice in Ireland. The man, in his 60s, was struck by the tree in the North Wexford area and pronounced dead at the scene. He is the first known fatality linked to Storm Eunice.
• The highest gust ever monitored in England has been provisionally recorded on the Isle of Wight, the Met Office said. Winds of 122mph were recorded at the very exposed site of Needles, on the Isle of Wight, on Friday morning. Hurricane-force winds – those above 74mph – have been recorded across large parts of south-west England and south Wales.
• Emergency services have declared major incidents in and around London due to the huge scale of 999 calls. London fire brigade said it had received more calls in two-and-a-half hours on Friday than it usually does in a day. South Central ambulance service, which covers a large part of the home counties, said it too was struggling to respond to the huge volume of calls.
• At least three people were taken to hospital with serious injuries in incidents potentially linked to Storm Eunice. A woman suffered serious head injuries after being hit by “falling roof tiles/roof materials” in Oxfordshire, while two men were taken to hospital in separate incidents in south London.
• Around 1,000 people were evacuated from London’s O2 Arena after strong winds tore a huge hole in its roof. Nobody was injured despite what firefighters called a “partial roof collapse” at one of the country’s leading entertainment venues, which opened to the public as the Millennium Dome in 2000.
• Travel across the UK ground to a halt with more than 400 flights cancelled, train lines blocked and motorists urged to stay at home. A rare “do not travel” alert was issued across railways in England and Wales, as seven operators suspended all services.

Nearly 400 flights in and out of the UK have been cancelled today due to Storm Eunice, according to data provided to the Guardian.

The aviation analytics firm, Cirium, said 261 inbound flights and 120 outbound had been cancelled as of about 3pm on Friday.

A total of 81 flights were cancelled at London Heathrow, 61 at London City airport, 38 at Manchester airport, 27 at London Gatwick and 17 at Glasgow International airport.

The London fire brigade has declared a major incident in response to the volume of 999 calls being taken in relation to Storm Eunice.

The service said it received 550 calls between 10.30am and 1pm – more than the average usually taken in a 24-hour period.

It said declaring a major incident allowed it to “focus our resources”.

Meanwhile South Central ambulance service, which covers a large part of the home counties around London, has just declared a “critical incident” due to the demand on its staff:

The roof of the £1bn Tottenham Hotspur stadium is moving up and down with the strong gusts whipping through London.

The 62,850-capacity stadium, which is the third-biggest in England, opened in 2019 and is designed to withstand major storms. Without doubt, Storm Eunice is its first real test:

PA Media reports that around 1,000 people were evacuated from the O2 arena when its roof was damaged in Friday’s storm.

London fire brigade said firefighters had been called to a “partial roof collapse” at the venue. There were no reports of any injuries.

Station commander Chris Kamara, who was at the scene, told the news agency: “Firefighters cordoned off the area to ensure no one was injured by any further falling debris.

“There has been no actual collapse or structural damage to the building, but due to the nature of the canvas material which covers the O2, it has come loose in high winds and looks quite dramatic. Crews have made the scene safe and the O2 is now closed until further notice.”