Storm Boelo has left a trail of destruction across the North East, with Newcastle City Council reporting 23 trees damaged in the city alone. Five trees were felled, while 18 were reported with broken limbs.
The storm swept through the North of the UK over the weekend, knocking out power to thousands of homes and resulting in at least two deaths due to falling trees. While the country braces for more heavy winds in the coming days, the region is not currently under a weather warning by the Met Office.
Council Teams Respond Across the City
In a post to its Facebook page, Newcastle City Council thanked residents for their patience as teams worked through the weekend. The council said: "Thank you, Newcastle. It was a busy weekend for our teams as Storm Boelo brought strong winds across the city."
The council's arboriculture and highways teams were out responding to incidents throughout the weekend. Extra staff were also brought into the Contact Centre to deal with increased call demand, and additional officers were deployed to clear blocked gulleys across the city.
"We’re incredibly grateful to everyone who worked in challenging conditions to help keep Newcastle safe," the council added. "And a big thank you to all of you for your patience while our teams responded, particularly those of you who faced disruption on our transport network. Extra teams will continue to be available as we deal with the effects of the adverse weather."
Wider Impact Across the Region
While the damage to trees in Newcastle looks severe, it has been worse in other areas. A tree smashed into the roof of a £600,000 new-build home, causing extensive damage to the newly finished house.
Northern Powergrid confirmed that the storm caused significant damage to its network, affecting more than 127,000 customers. The company announced that 13,000 customers would remain without electricity overnight.
This morning, the company stated: "The challenging weather conditions are significantly affecting our network and our ability to work safely to carry out repairs. Strong wind impact our ability to work at height, and it can take longer to get the power back on. We are working to restore final customers that have been impacted by Storm Boelo today."
