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Major incident closed as storm force winds ease

Rebecca Brahde
BBC News, Isle of Man
BBC A large tree lying across the road outside Watson's Nursery in Greeba. The tree has split in two.BBC
Several roads across the island have been blocked by fallen trees

A major incident declared after Storm Éowyn brought scores of trees down blocking arterial routes and hindering access for emergency services on the Isle of Man has been closed.

A red weather warning in place for seven hours has been downgraded to yellow, but the government said there was significant debris on the roads, with some still shut.

Ronaldsway Met Office recorded the highest winds for 20 years at the airport at 81mph (130km/h), while gusts of up to 107mph (172km/h) hit Snaefell Mountain.

The government said police had logged more than 100 incidents during the peak of the storm, with about 30 roads "closed or blocked at any one time".

Despite the easing of the weather warning, people have been advised to continue to travel only when necessary and those who did venture out were urged to "drive to the conditions".

The Isle of Man Constabulary said the Mountain Road reopened at 17:00 GMT but high sided vehicles were advised to "exercise caution".

ROB CALLISTER A fallen tree covered in ivy completely blocks a narrow country road.ROB CALLISTER
Many of the trees have now been cleared, including one at Abbeylands in Onchan

The Department of Infrastructure previously said the impact on services during the peak of the storm had become "over and above" what it could "comfortably manage".

All flights and ferries to and from the island were suspended amid the conditions.

Both primary and secondary schools were closed for the day along with all public counters as a result of the conditions.

While the majority of daytime buses were suspended, services resumed at about 16:00.

IOM CONSTABULARY A tree overhanging Peel Road during the early morning. There is a lot of debris on the main road and there are no cars.IOM CONSTABULARY
A damaged tree overhanging a road in the island's capital has since been removed
ANNEKA COLLINS The power stack, which has three prongs, the right one is falling off.ANNEKA COLLINS
Peel Power Station suffered damage to its stack in the gusts

Manx Utilities said about 370 properties had been left without power for a time across the island, including about 100 households in the area from Baldwin to Glen Helen, but the "vast majority" had been restored.

The government owned utilities provider said it was also dealing with two water mains failures due to uprooted trees and a pumping station affected by the power outages.

The authority also called for the public to "keep clear of the area" of Peel power station after the gales caused damage to part of the stack at the facility.

Manx Care cancelled most of its planned appointments for patients "unless there is a clinical imperative for them to proceed".

The island's coastline was hit by large waves at high tide

Police said damage to roofs had led to the closure of roads around Ramsey Shipyard.

While those in the vicinity of Peel Fire station and Michael Street in Peel were shut due to falling debris.

East Foxdale Road, at the Eairy, was closed due to a tree having fallen on power lines.

Duke Street remains closed and Bradda East is set to remain shut overnight.

Roads closed overnight

  • Ammal Road, Abbeylands
  • Glen Mooar Road, St John's
  • Ballamanagh Road, Sulby
  • Injerbrek Road
  • Bradda East Road, Port Erin
  • Balliera Road, Kirk Michael
SONIA VERLANDER An arial view of the lake at Mooragh Park in Ramsey, you can see a large white tent like structure partially blown into the lake.SONIA VERLANDER
Mooragh Park in Ramsey was also hit by the gales

Telecoms provider Sure said there had been temporary phone coverage issues across the west of the island for its customers due to a power outage at its Beary site, but that had since been resolved.

However, the company said its Bride site remained out of service and engineers would look to recover service once it was "safe to visit the site".

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