Road closures, power cuts and flooding - Storm Bert's impact on the South West

  • WATCH: The River Creedy near Newton St Cyres, Devon, bursts its banks

Hundreds are without power, roads have been closed and rail passengers have been advised to expect slower services as Storm Bert hits the South West.

A yellow weather warning for wind covering the entire West Country has been issued by the Met Office, and is in effect from 9am on Saturday 23 November until 9pm on Sunday 24 November.

A second yellow weather warning for rain covers the majority of the region and is in place from 6am on 23 November until midnight on 24 November.

Storm Bert has brought more than 80% of November’s average monthly rainfall in less than 48 hours as it continues to cause disruption around the country.

Strong winds have caused flights to be cancelled and trees have fallen on railway lines meaning lengthy delays.

Met Office meteorologist Craig Snell has said the effects of the storm will continue throughout the weekend.

“There will be some heavy rain and travelling conditions throughout the day will be pretty poor,” he said.

  • High tide at Dawlish on Saturday morning

He added that 68mph winds were recorded in Brixham, Devon on Saturday morning.

Over the weekend, Wales and the South West could see up to 75mm of rain widely, and potentially more. There is a chance that some places over Dartmoor could see 100-150mm of rainfall, the national weather service said.

Gloucestershire Police has also said that "due to the increased demand during Storm Bert", people should only call 999 in an emergency or where there is a risk to life.

The force said people can report non-emergencies on it's website, and flooded or blocked roads to the council online.

Flooding

Many roads have flooded, with some rivers bursting their banks.

Sean McIlroy was on a walk near Exeter at around 9:50am on Sunday when he found a Range Rover almost completely submerged.

"Never in 44 years have I seen it this bad", he said.

The Range Rover had completely flooded with fast moving water flowing through it, near Exeter. Credit: Sean McIlroy
The road next to the footpath has also flooded. Credit: Sean McIlroy

Sean and his partner Andra Lazar also heard a "crack and then a big bang" at around 8:30am on Sunday.

They found a rented van had been hit after a large tree fell on it.

The pair found a tree crushing a rented van in Exeter, after it was brought down by strong winds. Credit: Sean McIlroy

Andra said: "We went outside to take pictures and check to see if somebody was in the van or not, and to help them in case."

Extensive flooding has led animal charity the RSPCA to issue advice on how to ensure all pets and livestock are safe.

RSPCA Inspector Jason Finch, National Water Rescue Coordinator, said: “Floodwater can rise very quickly so if there is a flood warning in your area then act early - make sure you have a plan so that you know how to get your animals out of danger if the worst was to happen and you found yourself caught up in flooding.

A car partially submerged on the A431 Kelston Road, just outside of Bath. Credit: Paul Collins.

“Horses or livestock in flooded fields is also a big concern whenever there is heavy rain forecast, so while we’ve not launched any rescues yet, we are urging pet owners and farmers to act now to ensure the safety of their animals.

“Don’t put your own life or another’s life in danger to attempt an animal rescue and call us for help in an emergency.”

The driver of this Ford Fiesta hoped to cross this flooded road near Crediton but became unstuck on Sunday morning.

Power cuts

More than 3,000 homes across the South West are currently without power, according to the National Grid.

There are currently 117 separate outages across the region, affecting around 666 households. In Cornwall, this includes homes near Camborne, Truro and St Ives.

Households have also been left off the grid near Liskeard, Plymouth, Exeter, Honiton, right across Somerset, and around Kingswood, South Gloucestershire. Throughout the weekend, more than 9,000 households have been left without power at any one time.

  • A road closure in Exeter caused by a large tree collapsing onto a house, making it structurally unsafe

National Grid says work is underway to restore power to those affected.

Ross Easton, of Energy Networks Association (ENA) – which represents the UK’s power network operators, said: “There are a few localised weather-related power cuts in parts of Britain this morning. However, for most parts of the country the severe weather hasn’t yet had a significant impact.

“Forecasters are describing this as a ‘multi-hazard event’ with the worst of the weather yet to arrive, and so our members have extra engineers and contact centre teams available, and control rooms are monitoring the storm closely as it develops.”

A car crashed by a fallen tree brought down by strong winds in the Larkhill area of Bath. Credit: Ania Macioszek
Local resident Ania Macioszek spotted the vehicle had been hit by the tree. Credit: Ania Macioszek

Travel disruption

Multiple roads have flooded across the region as Storm Bert bring heavy rain, which is not expected to let up until Sunday evening.

One lane on the M4 Westbound from J18 (Bath) to J19 (Bristol) is closed due to debris being blown into the road.

The M48 Severn Bridge in Gloucestershire was closed due to strong winds, but has now reopened in both directions.

A driver is rescued from his vehicle on a flooded road near Crediton, Devon.

The Tamar Bridge has restricted traffic and closed lanes after winds of between 60 and 67mph were recorded on it. It was previously shut to high-sided vehicles but this has now been lifted. However, the centre lane remains closed to vehicles for safety reasons.

Other road closures include:

  • M5 Northbound entry slip road closed due to flooding at J17 (Cribbs Causeway)

  • M32 Southbound - Two lanes closed due to flooding between J19 (Bristol) to J1 (Hambrook)

  • M32 Northbound closed, queueing traffic due to flooding from J1 (Hambrook) to J19 (Bristol)

  • A30 closed in both directions between A388 Tavistock Road (Launceston) and Trethorne Leisure Park due to accident

  • A3072 closed in both directions near Copplestone due to an accident

  • A3088 Western Relief Road in Somerset is closed in both directions between Montacute and Yeovil due to an accident

  • A4136 in Longhope, Gloucestershire is closed in both directions due to flooding between the Yew Tree and Old Hill

  • A35 both ways closed, queueing traffic due to flooding from Longlands Lane (Winterbourne Abbas) to Long Bredy Hut Lane (Kingston Russell)

South Western Rail (SWR) has announced that services between Exeter and London Waterloo will start and finish at Basingstoke, meaning those trying to get to London will have to find alternative routes.

The company also said journey times will be longer between Salisbury and Exeter and between Bournemouth and Weymouth due to speed restrictions, and services across its network will start later than usual on Sunday and Monday because of safety inspections.

Colwick Street in Exeter is closed after this tree collapsed onto this house - now police fear it may be structurally unsafe.

There is also no service on Great Western Railway between Exeter St Davids and Barnstaple due to fallen tree on the line. There are also delays and some cancellations on GWR between London Paddington and Penzance due to flooding.

Travel-service Inrix also reports that all sailings have been cancelled on the St Mawes Passenger Ferry between St Mawes and Falmouth.

You can read more on how Storm Bert is affecting communities right across the country here.

Longleat shut for second day

Longleat, in Wiltshire, is just one of many attractions that have had to alter or cancel events planned this weekend. It said it's Festival of Light display has not been able to go ahead.

Several Christmas lights events were scrapped altogether or moved inside on 23 November due to the weather, including in Newton Abbot and in Cullompton.

Longleat is closed to the public for the second day due to storm damage.

Scott Ashman, head of operations, said: “We know it is disappointing for people who have booked but our priority has to be guest safety.

“We had hoped to be able to reopen today as the picture last night [23 November] was very different. However, an early morning inspection showed lots of lantern damage, which even if the wind dropped as forecast, and we opened later in the day it wouldn’t have been a good experience for people attending.

Storm damage at Longleat caused by strong winds, which has meant the site has had to shut for a second day. Credit: Longleat.

“When the weather improves, we have crews on standby to clear the grounds of tree debris and fix the lanterns so we are keeping everything crossed that we can reopen on Monday but will update guests later today.

“We have ensured automatic refunds for all who have booked, and we are grateful people have been understanding. We hope the majority can be accommodated on other dates as the event runs until 5 January.”

Organisers say they hope the Festival of Light will reopen to the public on Monday.

Storm Bert in pictures

Waves break over the promenade in Penzance on 23 November. Credit: Penzance Council.
The RNLI's Penlee Severn Class All Weather Lifeboat ‘Ivan Ellen’ launches during Storm Bert for a training exercise. Credit: Penzance Council.
A pair brave the waves on the seafront in Dawlish
Huge waves and spray break in Dawlish during Storm Bert.
High tide in Dawlish as Storm Bert hit the South West on the morning of 23 November.