Thousands of homes in Cornwall remain without power or water four days after Storm Goretti battered the region with gusts of nearly 100mph. As of Monday, National Grid reported around 1,250 properties still disconnected, mostly in the Helston area, while South West Water (SWW) said about 3,000 homes had no water supply. Cornwall Council confirmed 31 schools were closed or opening late due to the disruption.
SWW described the storm's impact on its water network as devastating, with six major water mains in Helston severely damaged by uprooted trees. Repair teams have restored supply to more than half of affected customers, but work continues. Lib Dem MP Andrew George, representing St Ives, criticised the government for not declaring a national emergency, saying that if the same had happened in London it would have dominated headlines. He expressed frustration that Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle granted an emergency debate for East Grinstead in Sussex—where 16,500 homes lost water—but not for Cornwall, where over 50,000 homes experienced outages.
George highlighted the severe impact on vulnerable people, including nursing home residents evacuated after a roof was ripped off. On Monday, MPs questioned SWW chief executive David Hinton's competence during an urgent question in the Commons. Meanwhile, a man in his 50s was found dead after a tree fell on a caravan in Mawgan, Helston; his death is not being treated as suspicious.
Janine Williams, landlady of the Blue Anchor pub in Helston, told the BBC the situation has been challenging, with many people coming in to charge phones and find warmth. She noted the pub was fortunate to have well water but lost mains water again overnight. SWW has acknowledged the severity of the damage and continues repair efforts.
