Residents of a historic tidal island off the Cornish coast have been left reeling after Storm Goretti unleashed devastation, toppling more than 80 trees in a violent six-hour onslaught.
The community on St Michael's Mount near Penzance awoke on Friday morning to a scene of widespread destruction, with the island's landscape dramatically altered by the ferocious winds.
Unprecedented Winds and Immediate Impact
The island's own weather station recorded a staggering wind speed of 111 miles per hour on Thursday evening. Darren Little, the 51-year-old head gardener, described the terrifying moment the storm hit its peak.
"At about 6pm it just got louder and louder and the waves were picking up, the spray was shooting up in the air," Mr Little recounted. "There was a loud crash, a loud bang and suddenly our power went."
The resulting power cut lasted through the night until Friday morning, leaving the island in darkness as the storm raged.
A Gardener's Heartbreak and Clean-Up Effort
For Darren Little, who has lived on the island for decades, the scale of the damage was unprecedented and deeply personal. He stated the destruction was ten times worse than any previous storm he had witnessed.
"It's more devastating for us as a gardener seeing the hard work you've done over many years, then everything's wiped out within about six hours," he said. "We've had bad weather before... but (in the past) we lose about six or seven trees. I'm heartbroken as well for all the gardeners."
He and his team began the massive clear-up operation at 8.30am on Friday, starting with the castle path to ensure emergency access, and worked through until 4.30pm.
Long Road to Recovery
While thankfully none of the island's residents were injured, Mr Little confirmed that some buildings had sustained structural damage. The immediate task of clearing the fallen timber is expected to take approximately three months.
However, the true recovery of the landscape will be a much longer process. Mr Little estimates it will be 18 months before the area is properly regenerated.
The loss of between 80 and 100 trees represents a significant portion of the island's arboreal cover, marking a profound change for this iconic Cornish landmark.
