Storm Ciarán: Mum resorts to boiling water on fire as thousands left without power in Cornwall

Watch Sam Blackledge's report

A mum-of-two in Cornwall resorted to boiling water on her living room fire to make breakfast after thousands of homes were left without power.

Storm Ciarán caused widespread damage and disruption as it swept across the county on Wednesday night and early Thursday morning.

Dr Jen Keogh, who lives in Perranporth, said: 'It's quite difficult to keep in the normal routine with the kids when we don't have any power.

'We've got no heating upstairs, no hot water, we can't do any cooking. Most of the food we've got all needs to be cooked.

"We've been trying to do eggs on the fire and heating hot water. But it's very slow and not going very well.'

Nine thousand homes were left without power, including an entire holiday park in Perranporth.

Caravan owner Gail Mayer said: 'Last night was frightening, it was horrendous. We just kept expecting the roof to blow off, trees to blow down. Then the power went out, so we couldn't even make ourselves a cuppa.'

Resident Selina Gorman added: 'I woke up at 4.30, opened my blinds, saw a big flash and all our electric went off. It's just been a bit crazy. It's not like I've ever heard it. I definitely underestimated how bad it was going to be.'

A National Grid spokesman said: 'We apologise for the inconvenience caused to our customers and please be assured we are working as quickly and safely as possible to repair network equipment and restore power supplies to our customers. Our contact centre teams are on hand 24/7 to offer support and advice throughout the storm.'