Storm Goretti leaves 64,000 houses with out energy as ‘worst snow for a decade’ hits central Britain, 100mph winds strike and skies flip pink – with flights grounded, roads blocked and rail traces closed

Tens of thousands of homes across Britain were without power today after Storm Goretti swept across the country with 100mph winds and up to a foot of snow.

Severe conditions caused school closures and travel disruption with flights at major airports grounded, roads blocked and large swathes of the rail network shut.

The wild and wintry weather brought 99mph winds overnight while a rare red warning was issued by the Met Office for ‘dangerous’ winds in South West England.

National Grid said 64,000 properties across England and Wales were without power this morning, including 48,000 in the South West and 15,000 in the West Midlands. 

Birmingham and East Midlands airports both had to suspend operations due to the heavy snow, while all trains in Cornwall and others in the North were axed.

The sky turned pink in areas of Birmingham this morning following the ‘weather bomb’, after the central pressure in the area of low pressure fell rapidly yesterday.

Roads were also closed due to fallen trees following a week of severe conditions that has seen villages in Scotland cut off and temperatures falling to nearly -15C.

People in Cornwall were urged to work from home this morning, with the council advising residents to avoid travelling due to the large number of closed roads. 

Birmingham Airport said in an update at 7.30am that its runway had reopened with a reduced service but urged passengers to check the status of their flight with their airline.

It said: ‘Our runway has reopened on a reduced basis, and our teams are working to get passengers away as efficiently as possible.

‘Whilst we apologise for any inconvenience Storm Goretti has caused, the safety of our colleagues and customers is our number one priority Passengers due to travel are advised to check the status of their flight with their airline.’

East Midlands Airport said at 6am that its runway had reopened after being closed overnight due to heavy snow on the runway, but passengers were warned delays may linger throughout the day.

British Airways cancelled 25 departures and 27 arrivals scheduled to operate at London’s Heathrow Airport today. The vast majority of affected flights were on short-haul routes.

Cornwall Council advised residents to avoid travelling this morning.

It said: ‘Roads and public transport remain disrupted this morning as we deal with the aftermath of Storm Goretti. Please avoid travelling if you can.’

It added: ‘A large number of roads are still closed due to fallen trees, downed power lines and debris. Our teams are working around the clock to clear them, and we ask that you give crews the space they need to carry out urgent repairs safely.’

All trains in Cornwall were suspended from 6pm yesterday, Network Rail said. 

In Devon, trains on the Exeter-Okehampton and Exeter-Barnstaple routes were suspended from the same time because of forecast high-wind speeds.

Rail services across England, Wales and Scotland may be affected until the end of the day today due to the weather, National Rail said.

Avanti West Coast said ‘do not travel’ advice was in place on its Midlands routes until 1pm today.

The train operator, which runs services on the West Coast Main Line, said: ‘An amended timetable will operate across all routes from 0700 until 1500, when we currently expect services to return to normal.

‘We strongly recommend travelling outside these times if possible.’

West Midlands Railway said it has suspended all services, adding: ‘We are unable to operate any services until the afternoon.’

No rail replacement road transport is being provided because of ‘uncertain road conditions’, it added.

London Northwestern Railway said it had suspended services between Birmingham New Street and Liverpool Lime Street until this afternoon.

Its services between Birmingham New Street and London Euston were reduced.

Train operator Transport for Wales said it will not run services on the majority of its routes today.

They include: Llandudno Junction to Llandudno; Llandudno Junction to Blaenau Ffestiniog; Wrexham to Bidston; Craven Arms to Swansea (via Heart of Wales Line); west of Carmarthen; Maesteg to Ebbw; Hereford to Shrewsbury; Shrewsbury to Birmingham International; and Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth.

Its other routes will have a reduced service all day.

Chiltern Railways, which plans to operate around half of its normal timetable, said it was not running services north of Birmingham Moor Street or on the line to Stratford-upon-Avon.

Stations at Hatton, Lapworth, Kings Sutton, Sudbury Hill Harrow, Sudbury & Harrow Road and South Ruislip will also not be served today.

Rail replacement buses will not be in operation, Chiltern said in a statement on its website.

The statement added: ‘Customers should check before they travel today, as services may be subject to disruption due to the impact of Storm Goretti. Services may be further amended at short notice.’

A number of East Midlands Railway (EMR) services will be affected by snow today.

EMR said the Hope Valley, the line between Sheffield and Manchester, will be closed all day.

A number of other lines, including between Nottingham and Lincoln and between Leicester and Nottingham, will be closed until at least 10am today.

The train operator said: ‘Please check your journey before travelling today. Heavy snowfall has impacted our regional routes with some services starting later than usual.’

National Highways said three out of four northbound lanes of the M1 motorway were closed between Junction 28 for Mansfield and Junction 29 for Chesterfield following a crash involving a lorry.

Recovery of the lorry had started and specialised winter fleet vehicles were en route to clear snow which settled in the closed lanes.

Drivers faced delays of up to half an hour as congestion stretched for four miles.

National Highways also said the A30 in Cornwall was closed in both directions between the A394 at Longrock and the A3074 at St Erth ‘due to a large number of trees that have fallen and are blocking the road’, with Devon and Cornwall Police assisting at the scene.

Meanwhile the A628 Woodhead Pass connecting Greater Manchester and South Yorkshire remained closed in both directions between the A616 for Flouch and the A57 for Hollingworth because of snow.

Drivers were advised to use the M60, M62 and M1 as an alternative route.

National Highways also said the A30 in Cornwall is closed in both directions between the A394 for Longrock and the A3074 for Longstone because of ‘a large number of fallen trees that are blocking the road’.

It added that specialist crews are working to clear the trees from the carriageway.

Services on the West Midlands Metro tram network were unable to operate in Birmingham this morning due to a fallen tree.

A statement issued by the network said: ‘Due to fallen trees along our tram line, no service is running between Wednesbury Great Western and Edgbaston Village.

‘Our civils team are working to remove the trees safely so that we can resume service as soon as possible.’ 

The closure means trams are operating between Wolverhampton Station and Wednesbury Great Western only.

Bus operator National Express West Midlands said all services were suspended until at least 8.30am ‘due to difficult road conditions and low temperatures’.

Ferry operator DFDS said all its sailings between Dover and France were disrupted.

A statement read: ‘All services are currently operating with delays due to strong winds in the Channel. Please check-in as normal, we will transfer all passengers onto the first available sailing on arrival. Apologies for any inconvenience caused.’

Stoke-on-Trent City Council warned of the ‘worst snowfall in a decade’ and reassured residents it had not run out of grit after ‘misinformation’ began to circulate.

It said: ‘We are now facing the worst snowfall we have faced in 10 years. The Met Office has predicted that we could have 3.5in of snow and temperatures as low as – 4C on Thursday into Friday morning. As a result, we are carefully managing our resources and stock of salt.’

The statement added: ‘Unfortunately, we have been made aware of some misinformation circulating regarding the council’s salt supplies and gritting operations. It simply isn’t true that we have run out of grit.’

The storm, named by French weather forecaster Meteo France, was described as a ‘multi-hazard event’ by the Met Office, with as much as 30cm (1ft) of snow possible in parts of the UK.

Winds of 99mph were recorded at St Mary’s Airport on the Isles of Scilly yesterday, which is a new record for the site, the Met Office said. 

Weather warnings were issued for snow, wind, rain and ice across the country, ahead of likely ‘disruption and dangerous travelling conditions’.

Met Office chief forecaster Neil Armstrong said: ‘Storm Goretti will be a multi-hazard event, with the most significant impacts from snow in parts of Wales and the Midlands and the very strong winds in the far South West, though heavy rain in some parts of Wales and East Anglia also has the potential to bring disruption to many.’

A yellow warning for wind was issued for the rest of the south coast and Wales, where gusts of up to 70mph are forecast, while a yellow warning for snow covers swathes of England from Bath to Northumberland.

Meanwhile, an amber warning for snow ran until 9am today covering parts of Wales, the Midlands and Yorkshire.

About 10cm (4in) to 15cm (6in) of snow is likely across the warning area, with up to 30cm (1ft) on higher ground in Wales and the Peak District.

Dozens of schools across the Midlands and Wales announced they would be closed today where the amber weather warning was issued.

A yellow warning for snow and ice was also in force across much of Scotland, where more than 250 schools remained closed today, including more than 150 in Aberdeenshire, dozens in the Highlands and Aberdeen, plus a number in Moray.

The red warning, which was in place until 11pm yesterday, warned of damage to buildings and homes, very large waves, flying debris resulting in danger to life, power cuts and public transport cancellations.

Brits living in Cornwall and the surrounding areas received a government alert on their phones yesterday, warning them of the severe conditions.

The Met Office’s website says amber weather warnings are issued when there is an increased likelihood of impacts from severe weather, including the possibility of travel delays, road and rail closures, power cuts and the potential risk to life and property.

Yellow warnings are issued for a range of weather situations, including when it is likely that the weather will cause some low level impacts, including some disruption to travel in a few places, or when the weather could bring much more severe impacts to the majority of people but the certainty of those impacts occurring is much lower, according to the Met Office.

Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney will visit the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route (AWPR) Amey depot in Aberdeen today to hear about recovery efforts as part of the wider ongoing response to the severe weather in northern Scotland.

All ‘priority one’ routes in Aberdeenshire and the Highlands are open, but Traffic Scotland confirmed snow gates remain closed on the B974 Bridge of Dye, and many local routes remain affected.

Rail lines around the country have now reopened, with the northern section of the Far North Line between Brora and Wick/Thurso being finally cleared of snow yesterday evening.

Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop welcomed the news, posting on social media: ‘Thank you Network Rail Scotland – huge effort in very challenging conditions.’

Aberdeenshire Council declared a major incident on Tuesday, warning of a ‘good chance’ some rural communities would be cut off, as well as the possibility of power cuts.

Ministers attended a meeting of the Scottish Government’s Resilience Room yesterday afternoon, after which Justice Secretary Angela Constance provided an update on recovery efforts.

‘Following five days of amber warnings and hugely challenging snow and ice conditions across northern Scotland, progress to fully recover continues,’ she said.

‘However, there are yellow weather warnings in place overnight for most of Scotland, and with Storm Goretti set to affect other parts of the UK and a cold but still unpredictable weather picture for Scotland over the weekend, it is clear that impacts will continue to be felt in the coming days.’

Mr Swinney also emphasised that the focus has now turned to recovery efforts. 

He said: ‘We’ve had a period of really intense and heavy snowfall in certain parts of Scotland, particularly the North East, the Highlands and the Northern Isles and the Western Isles, and the Government has been closely engaged with local resilience partnerships throughout that series of amber warnings, and those amber warnings have gone on for a prolonged number of days.

‘The challenge with the snow has been, quite simply, the volume, and we’ve had formidable resources available in the North East and in the Highlands to clear transport routes on the trunk roads and also on the rail network, which is the responsibility of the Government.’

He added: ‘We are, however, thankfully, in a position where we are able to focus more on recovery than dealing with the immediate incident, and that very much is the focus of all local resilience partnerships, and the Government is supporting with the reallocation of resources where that is possible to do so.’

Assistant Chief Constable Alan Waddell, of Police Scotland, said: ‘We have been working closely with resilience partners across local authorities, other emergency service partners, transport partners, NHS and health and social care partnerships, and other local organisations to support communities affected by adverse weather and keep public services open where possible.

‘Some services may be impacted by adverse weather and I would encourage the public to check on neighbours or relatives, if they are able to do so safely.’