Storm Arwen was “an event we have not seen in 60 years” and Britain needs to be prepared for more extreme weather due to the climate crisis, according to the business minister, as more than 30,000 homes remain without electricity.
Kwasi Kwarteng said the majority of these people will have the power restored “within the next day or two”, although he admitted that some in remote locations may have to wait much longer.
In tribute to the three people who died in the storm, the business secretary said the unusually strong winds of nearly 100 mph had damaged power lines and required a huge restoration effort by engineers.
The hardest hit areas are the Wear Valley, which surrounds Eastgate and northern Northumberland, the northern Peak District and the southern lakes of northern England and Aberdeen and Perth in Scotland.
The minister urged those still without electricity to call 105, admitting that the telephone number for the emergency power outage was under initial pressure with unacceptable delays in the wake of storm Arwen over the weekend, with reports that people had to wait up to two hours to get through.
“Clearly, Storm Arwen was an event we have not seen in probably 60 years since the record started. We must be prepared for similarly extreme, difficult weather conditions in the future. We need to ensure that our system is resilient in that situation, ”the business secretary told the House of Commons.
He responded to questions from the shadow of climate change secretary, Ed Miliband, who said: “Faced with the climate crisis, extreme weather events will unfortunately become more common in the future. We can not be so vulnerable in the future. There is real concern that some lessons are not have been taught, and on this occasion we must face these lessons and learn them. “
It will be at least the end of the week – seven days after the devastating storm first hit – before electricity is restored to some people, the Energy Networks Association (ENA) has said. Engineers have reconnected 97% of the homes affected by the power outages, and the majority of those still affected live in remote locations where access for crews is difficult, according to ENA.
Welfare centers and hot food have been provided, with energy network companies working in partnership with local resilience forums, emergency services, local authorities and the British Red Cross.
Chris Burchell, CEO of Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks, apologized to customers. He said the impact of the storm had caused “catastrophic damage to the electricity grid across the north east of Scotland and is the most significant event we have ever had to deal with in the area in a generation”.
The storm’s storm also brought down thousands of trees, including irreplaceable specimens, according to the National Trust. The conservation charity said the full extent of the damage was still being assessed, but that it would likely cost at least £ 3 million to repair.
More than 50 trees were uprooted in the trust’s Bodnant Garden in North Wales, including a 51-meter-high coastal redwood, as well as many hybrid rhododendrons unique to the property.
Storm Arwen is also believed to have blown a rare sea turtle 5,000 miles off course after it was spotted on a beach in North Wales. A couple from Holywell were walking their dog on Talacre Beach in Flintshire on Sunday when they spotted the immobile creature. Marine experts identified the turtle as an Atlantic ridley, one of the most endangered species of sea turtles that generally lives off the Gulf of Mexico.
The pair revived the tortoise, which suffered from cold water shock, and transferred it to the Anglesey Sea Zoo, where it will spend the next few months recovering before being released back to its natural habitat.
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