Huge winds put man within inch of death as brick wall is ripped off building amid 65mph gales
A man has made a lucky escape after almost being crushed by a brick wall ripped off a building by huge winds in London, while gales of up to 65mph swept through much of the UK.
Footage of the man's brush with death showed him walking past the Stokey Vintage Cafe in east London, moments before dozens of bricks smashed onto the ground behind him.
The video, which was recorded on CCTV in Stoke Newington and posted to Facebook by Alexandra Şöhret Marie Hamit, has been viewed almost 60,000 times.
London Fire Brigade, who attended the incident, confirmed they were called to Stoke Newington around 10:20am on Sunday, where they used an aerial ladder to clear the debris.
They say no people were involved and they left the area at 12:02pm, as gales and snow disrupted many parts of Britain, with some police forces reporting closed roads and others saying they had been called to a number of fallen trees.
Ms Hamit, whose CCTV recorded the dramatic footage, told ITV News of her "shock" after watching the man come "within inches of either losing his life or being very severely hurt".
She said: "I counted it and it was about two seconds that he had, if he'd have stumbled or even changed his footing he would have felt the full force of all of those bricks and I don't think anyone would walk away from such a dramatic accident."
She added: "I think he should definitely do the lottery."
Following up on the incident was ITV News Correspondent Martin Stew, who obtained footage of a new angle which laid bare just how close the man was to being hit.
In the footage the man can seen running away as he's almost hit by the falling bricks.
Elsewhere in the country Kent County Council urged motorists to take care on the roads in "difficult conditions" as its highway teams worked to clear fallen trees as quickly as possible.
Essex Police said they had experienced "extremely high call demand" because of the weather and warned motorists to travel only where "absolutely necessary".
Wrapping on Grenfell Tower in London was dislodged as support group Grenfell United tweeted: "If you're in area u may have noticed some damage to the wrapping on the tower this is because of strong winds. A team is onsite at the moment who will put a temp cover as soon as safe to do so before replacing damaged part later this week."
Devon and Cornwall Police tweeted: "Police receiving exceptional number of calls from right across Devon and Cornwall re fallen trees across roads this morning due to the high winds. Please reduce speed and be vigilant when driving."
Kirkstone Pass in the Lake District was fully closed due to "hazardous weather conditions", said Cumbria Police. The force added that motorists should take care with snow and ice reported in some parts of the county.
A gritter overturned in snowy conditions in Dumfries and Galloway, with the driver suffering only a minor injury when the vehicle came off the A76 near Mennock at around 8.20am.
After a slight reprieve in conditions expected on Monday, the wild weather is expected to make a return towards the middle of the week.
Weather for the rest of the week:
The Met Office has issued two further yellow weather warnings for wind, the first of which covers much of Northern Ireland, and will begin at 3pm on Tuesday and last until midnight.
Another is in place for much of England from around midnight on Wednesday until 3pm.
During the warning periods, across Northern Ireland there could be gusts of 60mph-70mph, with 50mph-55mph seen quite widely across England and 60mph-65mph in coastal areas.
A band of heavy rain will also push south-eastwards, and will be followed by some heavy showers during Tuesday and Wednesday.