Felled trees and power lines blown down by Storm Babet block County Durham roads
Several major roads in County Durham have been blocked after Storm Babet felled trees and power cables, leading to police closing the routes. The storm has brought high-speed winds and torrential rain to the region today (Friday, October 20), while yellow and amber weather warnings are in place for the North East. As part of the widespread disruption, which has left some houses without power, several County Durham roads were forced to close after felled trees blocked the routes for motorists.
Earlier today, there were reports of fallen power cables on Cleves Avenue, Ferryhill between Metal Bridge and East Howle caravan site, which brought East Howle to a standstill and left several drivers facing widespread travel disruption. The fallen cables also meant that hundreds of homes were left without power for several hours. Meanwhile, a felled tree on the A688 between Bishop Auckland and Spennymoor was blocked, with police seen blocking the route on both sides.
Police block off the A688 near Bichester (Image: SARAH CALDECOTT) A spokesperson for Durham Police said: "A road closure has been put in place on the A688 from Bishop Auckland to Binchester due to a fallen tree. "The road is expected to be closed for several hours.
"Please find an alternative route." Finally, a felled tree also caused traffic disruption on the A693 Oxhill, near Stanley, after a tree was pictured stretching over one side of the carriageway.
While the road wasn't closed for police, it led to heavy congestion for drivers, who were queued waiting for traffic that was stuck behind the tree. Yellow and amber weather warnings for wind and rain have been issued to the North East after Storm Babet hit the North East late on Wednesday evening. Get more from The Northern Echo with a Premium Plus Digital Subscription for as little as GBP1.50 a week. Click here.[2]
Events in the North East have been cancelled and authorities are urging the public to take caution as the storm continues to cause winds of over 25mph.
According to the Met Office forecast, the extreme weather is set to die down from 1pm on Saturday (October 21), where the likelihood of rain will fall from 50 per cent to 10 per cent.
Winds of up to 22mph will also fall to as low as 6mph by the end of the day.
References
- ^ South Shields pier lighthouse loses its dome in Storm Babet (www.thenorthernecho.co.uk)
- ^ Click here. (www.thenorthernecho.co.uk)