Severe weather conditions across the UK caused by Storm Isha have left thousands of people without power, after the storm brought heavy rain and winds with speeds of up to 99mph. Scotland, Northern Ireland, north-west England and Wales were hit, and those in remote areas may not have their power restored until Tuesday. Two people died, including a man in Scotland after the car he was in crashed into a fallen tree. The next named storm, Storm Jocelyn, is expected to bring wind gusts of 55 to 65mph across north-western Scotland.
Affected by the storm, power outages impacted about 53,000 homes in Northern Ireland and around 30,000 properties across England, Wales and Scotland were left without power on Monday morning. The Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, announced that almost 300,000 properties had their electricity returned and said the government is working with relevant authorities to restore power to homes that are still without power. It was stated that some properties may remain without power until Tuesday, particularly in remote areas according to Lawrence Slade from the Energy Networks Association (ENA).
The Met Office said the current season is likely to see the highest number of storms since storm naming began in 2015, with Storm Isha being the ninth and Storm Jocelyn being the tenth. BBC Weather presenter Darren Bett said Britain has reached the letter “H” earlier than in any previous season, and two more named storms could mark a new record. Climate change’s impact on the frequency of storms is unclear, but a warming atmosphere makes extreme rainfall more likely.
As heavy rain and flooding this week could lead to flooding, the Environment Agency issued 19 flood warnings and 83 flood alerts in England, with 36 flood warnings in place in Scotland, and one in Wales. The impact of weather situations on transport services has resided, although ScotRail, Gatwick Express, Great Northern, Southern, Thameslink and East Midlands Railway services faced disruption on Monday morning. Dozens of schools were closed on Monday in Scotland and Northern Ireland. A number of trees at the Dark Hedges in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, made famous by TV series Game of Thrones, were felled or damaged by the storm
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