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More than a third of million customers have been reconnected after their power was cut during Storm Isha – but there have been warnings that more extreme weather is on the way.
As of 7pm on Monday (22 January), the Energy Networks Association (ENA) said electricity supplies had been restored to around 370,000 customers, while 24,000 were still disconnected in Great Britain and 15,000 remained without power in Northern Ireland.
The trade body said around 5,000 field staff were working to fix damage from the storm, along with thousands of customer service and support staff. It said helicopters and drones had been deployed to speed up damage assessments but warned that some customers in Great Britain are likely to remain without power until Tuesday.
It said the recovery is likely to be a “multi-day event” in Northern Ireland.
ENA chief executive Lawrence Slade said on Monday evening: “Great progress has been made since Storm Isha abated today, with 370,000 customers across the country reconnected. Network operators are supporting those without power this evening by mobilising additional welfare support, including hot food and drink vans.
“Thousands of field staff and technicians have spent the day working to repair damage, clear debris and reconnect power. Conditions are always difficult in the aftermath of a storm, but we are facing another storm, Jocelyn, tomorrow and this could make things particularly challenging.”
Speaking on Radio 4’s Today programme on Monday morning, Slade noted the widespread extent of the storm damage: “It’s one of the worrying aspects of this particular storm that it has hit almost nationwide.
“There was just a very small pocket in the East that wasn’t really covered by an amber warning last night so that’s causing problems in terms of how we organise engineers to get across the country.”
The Met Office recorded gusts of up to 99mph in England, while Transport Scotland reported a 107mph gust on the Tay Bridge in Dundee.
The ENA said network companies are now carefully monitoring the progress of Storm Jocelyn, which the Met Office expects to bring winds of up to 55 to 65mph across north west Scotland on Wednesday morning. It said gusts of 75 to 80mph are expected in some exposed parts of the coast and the Western Isles.
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