St Helier's Christmas light switch-on event called off because of stormy weather

Hundreds of islanders usually turn out to St Helier to see the town's Christmas lights switched on. Credit: ITV Channel

This year's events to mark the start of Christmas in Jersey have been called off because of the poor weather.

The island's Christmas light switch-on event was originally due to take place on Thursday 17 November but had been pushed back by a week because of stormy weather.

Now, the Parish of St Helier has cancelled the event altogether, saying it still would not be safe to hold an event with large numbers of people in town due to the high winds forecast.

The lights will still be switched on from Thursday 24 November as planned, but there will be no event to mark the occasion.

St Helier's Town Centre Manager, Connor Burgher, says safety has to be the top priority:

"This has been an incredibly tough decision to make as the switch on is such a fun evening, but the safety of people has to come first.

"I do encourage you to still come to town though for Christmas shopping, to visit the Genuine Jersey Christmas Market and see what our retailers and hospitality industry have to offer."