Storm Boelo leaves deaths, outages and travel disruption across UK and Ireland

Storm Boelo brought damaging winds, fallen trees and widespread disruption across the United Kingdom and Ireland, killing two people and leaving more than 160,000 properties without power at one stage, according to The Guardian. A 60-year-old man died after being struck by a tree on a minor road in south-west Scotland, while a man in his 20s was killed when a tree fell onto his car in Mill Hill, north London. Police said there were no suspicious circumstances in the Scottish death and that reports would be submitted to the procurator fiscal.

The strongest gusts exceeded 80mph in exposed locations. The Met Office recorded 84mph in Argyll and Bute, 83mph in Snowdonia and 82mph on Tiree in the Inner Hebrides. Northern Ireland recorded 78mph at Orlock Head, while Donegal’s Malin Head reached 83mph, according to the BBC.

Power networks restored electricity to hundreds of thousands of customers, but substantial outages remained. The Energy Networks Association said 161,400 customers across Great Britain were still without power at one point on Sunday, while about 53,000 homes in Scotland remained disconnected at 5pm. Earlier figures cited by the organization showed that 344,900 customers had been restored and 82,600 remained without supply, suggesting that totals were changing rapidly as engineers worked.

Northern Ireland Electricity Networks said about 12,500 properties had lost power during the storm and that 11,500 had been reconnected, leaving fewer than 1,000 affected. In the Republic of Ireland, the ESB said about 5,000 homes, farms and businesses remained without electricity on Sunday evening, mainly in the northwest. The two sets of figures cover different networks and jurisdictions and cannot be combined into one total.

Transport was heavily affected. Flights were canceled at Belfast City, Belfast International and Dublin airports, with about 40 cancellations at Belfast International and 30 at Dublin. Ferry services from Belfast to Cairnryan and Liverpool, and some sailings from Cairnryan and Larne, were also canceled.

Rail operators imposed speed restrictions and closed sections of Scottish railway, where flooding and fallen trees damaged or blocked lines. Road conditions also deteriorated. Northern Ireland’s Department for Infrastructure recorded about 470 incidents, chiefly fallen trees, branches and surface water.

The Foyle Bridge in Londonderry reopened, but temporary flood defenses remained at two Belfast roads. Authorities urged drivers to take care because of debris and obstruction. The storm led to the cancellation of public events and closures at sites including Edinburgh Castle and Fountains Abbey.

Liverpool’s River of Light and London’s Diwali on the Square were canceled on safety grounds. The Met Office warned of flying debris, crashing waves and heavy rain, while its chief forecaster said the greatest disruption was expected in northern areas. Conditions were forecast to remain unsettled.

A further low-pressure system was expected to bring strong winds from Monday into Tuesday, with a yellow warning covering Antrim, Down and Londonderry and gusts of 70mph or more possible in exposed places. Forecasters expected the second half of the week to become quieter, drier and less windy.