ONE of the most powerful storms to hit the UK in recent times knocked out power for thousands of homes across Wales.
Last night Storm Isha hit, and the giant storm surge certainly came in with a bang.
There were reported wind speeds of up to 90mph while heavy rain battered the country.
In Wales, 3,000 properties were affected by power cuts. On Monday morning, around 200 homes in south and mid-Wales were still without power, according to National Grid.
Flood alerts were put in place by Natural Resources on the Rivers Usk, Ebbw, Sirhowy, Lwyd and Rhymney running into Monday.
NRW said rivers had responded to the impact of Isha with water levels higher than usual and flooding of low-lying land and roads expected.
Last night, fire services had to attend a flooding incident at a supported living accommodation in Caerphilly.
The bridges were impacted by Isha too, however Monday morning’s rush hour wasn’t as badly affected as some feared.
Both the M4 Prince of Wales Bridge remained open as did the M48 Severn Crossing, however traffic was being directed off at the exit slip and then back on at the entry slips due to the high wind speeds.
Storm Isha hit the UK. Now it’s storm Joeclyn’s turn says the Met Office
This year, storms have felt like London buses, in fact, they feel more frequent than the famous London red top.
Storm Henk hit our shores at the start of the year. Storm Isha hit yesterday and next up is storm Jocelyn which is set to make landfall tomorrow, Tuesday, January 23.
While Jocelyn is classified as a storm, it is not set to be as strong as Isha.
#StormJocelyn has been named by @MetEireann and is forecast to bring strong winds and heavy rain to the UK on Tuesday and into Wednesday #weatheraware 🌀 pic.twitter.com/DihJvBBCUg
— Met Office (@metoffice) January 22, 2024
A Met Office spokesperson said: "A spell of strong winds associated with Storm Jocelyn is expected to develop across this region during Tuesday afternoon, peaking overnight into Wednesday morning, before easing across most areas by midday.
"However, winds are likely to remain strong across and just to the east of the Pennines until early Wednesday afternoon.
"Peak gusts of 45-55mph are likely inland, perhaps 65mph on some exposed coasts."
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