A family in Southampton feared a bomb had gone off when a tree smashed through their roof while they were watching TV on Saturday night, during back-to-back storms Austen and Boelo that brought winds exceeding 80mph and heavy rain across the UK.
Aman Kaur, 45, who lives with her partner Harmesh Lal, 46, and their children Sam, 16, and Angelian, 12, described the terrifying moment the tree ploughed through the ceiling. 'Suddenly we thought it was a bomb. The glass and the noise were shocking,' she said.
Teenager covered in glass
Kaur told The Sun that 'glass went everywhere', leaving eldest son Sam 'covered with broken shards'. She said: 'He just went into shock. He couldn't move. Harmesh and I both quickly grabbed him and held him. He was shaking. It took us maybe a couple of minutes to realise that actually, a tree was on the house.'
The family are all safe, with just 'a couple of scratches' on their faces from the glass. 'I am so glad we are all alive,' she said. Photos show branches piercing the roof, with a large crack in Angelian's bedroom upstairs.
Family's forever home damaged
The household now faces uncertainty after investing their savings into what they expected to be their forever home. 'I had fish in my pond in the back garden, and they are all dead. They are all gone. I literally stood there this morning and cried,' said Kaur. 'It is so scary. If we keep getting storms like that, I fear this will happen again.'
The Met Office has issued another yellow warning, which will remain in place overnight as gusts and downpours continue to batter parts of northern England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Met Office meteorologist Alex Burkill said conditions will improve briefly before more rain tomorrow.
Further warnings and impact
'There are more heavy rain and strong winds to come because of a deepening area of low pressure – another one – which is heading towards us,' he said. 'Albeit, this low doesn't look as deep or is coming quite as close as Boelo did.'
Earlier today, the Environment Agency issued 10 warnings that flooding is expected and 65 alerts where it is possible, while the Scottish Environment Protection Agency said 10 flood warnings and 11 flood alerts were in place. By 7pm last night, the Energy Networks Association said 90,000 customers in the UK and Ireland were still without power.
Authorities have confirmed the deaths of two men from falling trees, with one man in his 20s pronounced dead in north London after a tree fell onto the car he was driving. Another man, in his 60s, was hit by a tree near Castle Douglas in Dumfries. Additionally, two women were taken to hospital after being hit by a toppling tree in Aberfeldy, Perth and Kinross.
