Storm Bert causes severe disruption in the United Kingdom and Ireland – Libération

A violent storm, named Bert, hit the United Kingdom and Ireland on Saturday, with violent winds, heavy snowfall and the risk of flooding, disrupting transport and depriving tens of thousands of people. electricity homes and causing one death in England.

On Sunday, a state of “major incident” was declared in Wales, particularly affected by flooding, reports Sky News. North Wales Police found a body in Trefiw, in the north-west of the region, where a 75-year-old man was missing, caught in bad weather while walking his dog. In the country, more than 100 flood warnings have been issued. English Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Sunday evening that he had contacted his Welsh counterpart, Eluned Morgan, to discuss the situation.

One dead in Hampshire, body found in Wales

On Saturday, around 8 a.m., a sixty-year-old died in the Hampshire region (southern England) after a branch fell on his car. Around a hundred flood alerts were issued in England, Wales, as well as Scotland, which was covered in a white blanket on Saturday. As of Saturday afternoon, nearly 4,000 homes were without power in central, south-west England and south Wales, with 27,000 people also affected in north-west England. eastern England, Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, electricity network operators said.

In the west and north-west of Ireland, 60,000 homes, farms and businesses were also affected by power outages, the Irish public supplier ESB said early this morning. Many roads, train and ferry lines have had to be closed, and flooding has already affected the west of Ireland and Northern Ireland, which were first affected on Friday evening.

Jason Kelly, one of the heads of the British meteorological agency (Met Office), described this storm as an event to “multiple risks”, with a mix of snow, rain and wind for most of the weekend.

Up to 13 cm of snow

In England, snowfall of up to 13cm fell in some areas, with strong winds recorded at more than 130km/h. Traffic at Newcastle Airport in the north-east was severely disrupted by the snow, and planes had to be diverted to Belfast and Edinburgh.

Many trains were also canceled for all of Saturday, and the state highway agency warned of the danger of traveling on northeastern roads due to blizzard and snow. Several football matches were also canceled.

Much of the rest of the country remained on yellow alert for the entire weekend.