UK weather: ‘Tornado’ shatters windows & sparks evacuations as Storm Gerrit triggers flood warnings & travel chaos today
A TORNADO shattered windows and sparked evacuations as Storm Gerrit triggered flood warnings and travel chaos across Britain today.
A “supercell thunderstorm” crossed Greater Manchester last night causing widespread damage to properties, the Met Office said.
The forecaster added: “We know from our Dopplar radar that it had a strong rotating updraft.
“Whilst we don’t yet have surface data to confirm, the presence of these features suggests a tornado at the surface was likely.”
Greater Manchester Police said officers were called to “numerous reports of significant damage” to homes in Stalybridge, Tameside, at around 11.45pm due to a “localised tornado”.
No injuries were reported but many residents were forced to leave their homes.
Chief Superintendent Mark Dexter from GMP said: “This incident has undoubtedly affected numerous people in the Stalybridge area with many residents displaced from their properties during the night.
“Our highest priority is keeping people safe which is why we are advising those who have been displaced not to return or enter their properties which have significant damage until they have been assessed by structural engineers.
“I would also like to urge members of the public to avoid the area where possible and take extra care when travelling in vehicles on the roads in Stalybridge and the surrounding areas, due to debris in the road.”
Meanwhile there are 22 flood warnings in place across Hereford, York and Carlisle and 153 flood alerts.
Miles of cars were left trapped in snow yesterday, with trains across the UK cancelled as chills of -6.2C were recorded in Braemar, Scotland.
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) said workers had been dealing with wind speeds of 80mph in some coastal areas as they worked to reconnect customers.
High winds, along with heavy rain and snow, damaged electricity networks across Scotland as fallen trees, branches and other debris brought down power lines.
A yellow warning for wind and snow remained in place until 6am in the Shetlands.
SSEN said power had been restored to 25,000 properties with a further 16,000 homes entering Thursday without power.
An SSEN spokesman said: “The widespread extent of the damage, the ongoing adverse weather conditions, and the challenges accessing faults due to fallen trees, flooding and road closures, together mean that full network restoration will take time.
“Some customers in rural areas may be off supply for up to 48 hours.”
Scotland Police confirmed the A9 has fully reopened in both directions and is “passable with care” after snow blocked the road between Drumochter and Dalwhinnie.
Inspector Michelle Burns, from Police Scotland’s Road Policing Unit, said: “Conditions for travel in the affected areas may be hazardous and extra caution should be exercised by all road users.”
The A90 northbound has also reopened after earlier closures, but southbound lanes at Lochlands, Forfar remain off-limits with local diversions in place.
Scotland’s rail network experienced widespread cancellations and delays with a train driver’s cabin hit by a falling tree.
Aslef Scotland confirmed the driver was uninjured and Labour MSP Paul Sweeney said passengers were also unharmed.
ScotRail suspended multiple train services until further notice, impacting trains travelling while other lines saw their timetables shelved until “a full inspection can be carried out” on the railway network.
Train operator LNER, which runs services between London and Scotland on the East Coast Main Line, also advised customers not to travel due to the weather.
Customers stranded by the disruption were told to book hotels which they can claim back.
Avanti West Coast, which operates services on the West Coast Main Line, said its route to Scotland is impassable with all services to and from London terminating at Preston.
Those with pre-booked tickets for travel between Preston and either Edinburgh or Glasgow can board trains on Thursday or Friday, the operator said.
Heathrow Airport cancelled 18 flights due to air traffic control restrictions, understood to be return routes from Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Jersey and Manchester, and to Barcelona, Berlin, Madrid and Paris.
Storm Gerrit also brought plenty of rain gauge at the Great Langdale Valley in the Lake District recording 80mm – nearly half the usual 178mm monthly rainfall for December, the Met Office said.
The fastest recorded wind gusts so far are 86mph at Inverbervie on the north-east coast of Scotland, 84mph at Fair Isle and 83mph at Capel Curig, north Wales, the forecaster said.