Power cuts and train cancellations as Storm Darragh batters UK / Photo: Paul ELLIS - AFP
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Power cuts and train cancellations as Storm Darragh batters UK
Tens of thousands of people across the UK were left without power on Saturday morning after Storm Darragh hit the country with strong winds and caused pre-Christmas travel disruption.
The UK's Met Office had issued a rare red alert for high winds overnight to Saturday morning (0300 to 1100 GMT) covering parts of Wales and southwest England.
The government warned three million people living in the area with a siren-like alert on their phones to stay at home on Friday night.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said the storm posed a "challenging situation".
"About three million homes will have had the emergency alert system to their mobile phone. I would just encourage anyone who has had that to follow the advice," Reynolds told Sky News on Saturday.
Darragh, the fourth named storm of the season, is also expected to bring heavy rain through the weekend, with more than 100 flood warnings and alerts in place across the UK.
One man died after a tree fell onto his van during the storm, police in Lancashire, northwest England said.
In Wales, the Met Office estimated gusts of up to 150 kmph (93 mph), which knocked out power for over 50,000 people, according to the PA news agency.
Power cuts affected 86,000 homes in England, Scotland and Wales, according to the Energy Networks Association.
Trains were disrupted or suspended on several routes including from Glasgow to Edinburgh in Scotland, and between Cambridge and Stansted Airport in eastern England.
Rail operator CrossCountry put a "do not travel" notice in place for Saturday due to cancellations and severe delays.
Network Rail Wales suspended trains on the Welsh northern coast due to a "fallen tree blocking the line", and several bridges in southern England and Wales were closed for safety reasons.
A separate amber warning, which is less serious than the red alert but still poses "potential risk to life and property", covering a larger stretch of the UK and Northern Ireland is in place until Saturday night.
In Northern Ireland, thousands were left without power, and several bus and train services were suspended or delayed.
Christmas markets and sporting events were postponed, including the Merseyside derby between Premier League leaders Liverpool and Everton.
In Ireland, which issued an "orange" wind warning, 400,000 people were left without electricity, according to the RTE news agency.
Dublin Airport said a "a number of flights scheduled for Saturday morning have been cancelled by airlines" due to the storm.
Darragh comes two weeks after Storm Bert battered much of Britain, causing "devastating" flooding in parts of Wales and knocking out power to thousands of homes in Ireland.
V.Merendino--LDdC
