Storm Arwen: 'Dozens' of Northumberland homes still without power

Dozens of homes in Northumberland are still without power two weeks after Storm Arwen hit the North East.

Northern Powergrid said on Wednesday electricity had been restored to all 240,000 properties affected by the "worst storm in over 20 years".

But it is thought around 30 homes in the Whitfield area, near Hexham, still do not have a full supply because of issues with temporary generators.

Residents have reported the power keeps cutting out.

Homes in County Durham and Cumbria are also still relying on generators.

A government review is already under way into how power companies responded to Storm Arwen.

Northern Powergrid has urged anyone still experiencing power outages to contact the company.

The energy distributor had already said it would take well into the new year to fix damage to overhead power lines before everyone was back on the main grid.

Jim Cardwell, from Northern Powergrid, told BBC Radio Newcastle the supplier had deployed more than 300 generators during the height of the restoration process.

"We are progressively taking them off the system and as soon as we can, we will do," he said.

"Our work hasn't stopped. There might be customers who are back on, but they are on temporary fixes."

Mr Cardwell said the company was taking "proactive steps" to maintain supplies, with refuelling teams checking on generators and remote instrumentation to inform them when generators need attention.

He also said protections were in place for customers, regardless of whether they are back on the grid or on temporary fixes.

Those most affected for the longest periods will be due "well over £1,000" in compensation, he said, with the first payments being sent out next week.

People will also be able to claim welfare support costs, with details on how to claim to be published on Friday.

Scott Dickinson of Northumberland County Council said he believed Northern Powergrid was fighting to protect its reputation.

"It is a natural ambition of a private company to try to rebuild its reputation that has been damaged during this period, where they haven't responded to the storm as effectively as they could have done in the first place," he said.

"I guess it is now reputational damage limitation but that doesn't help residents who are still without power."

Storm Arwen caused major damage when it hit land on 26 November, with parts of Northumberland and County Durham worst affected.

Electricity North West said it had installed about 40 generators to households in Cumbria while repairs are ongoing.

Anne-Marie Coe lives near Red Row, Northumberland, with her elderly mother and her mother's husband, who have various medical conditions and are partially sighted.

Both had falls when their home was without power for 10 days, and Ms Coe says the worry is affecting her sleep.

"It has been horrific and I have tried every way to get more support for my family," she said.

"There hasn't been anyone around to ask what can we do to help, and no confirmation of how long this is going to go on; we have just been living day to day.

"If the power goes off in the middle of night and someone has to get up, I'm waiting for the next bang of them falling over. It is not possible to keep people safe in pitch-black, even with a torch. It's almost harder now because you don't know if the power is going to be on or off."

Another resident - Tony - in nearby Druridge Bay told BBC Radio Newcastle he and his partner had been "forced to live like animals" for the past 14 days.

Tony, who has had two heart attacks this year, said Northern Powergrid was aware of his situation but he had been left without electricity, heating and hot water.

"My partner and I are now both sick physically and probably mentally," he said.

"Because of my heart I am supposed to stay warm, comfortable and stress-free. For the past 14 days, none of that has been remotely possible.

"My partner hasn't been able to work for several days as a result of the black-outs. Are [Northern] Powergrid going to pay his wages for the days he couldn't work? We now have serious worries about our future, both physically and financially."

The energy company says it will pay £70 in compensation for everyone without power for two days or more, and £140 for every extra day after that. The previous cap of £700 has been lifted because of the "exceptional nature" of Storm Arwen and its aftermath.

Meanwhile, one Northumberland family say they will be coping with the impact of Storm Arwen for months to come.

Their home in Lowick, south of Berwick-upon-Tweed, suffered thousands of pounds' worth of damage after a 140-year-old tree crashed into it.

Ged Thomas had initially hoped his family could return home in the spring, having had to move into temporary accommodation.

But after a visit from a structural engineer, he said it was "going to be six months or more".

"The tree hit the side of the house and the horizontal cross-piece has cracked in five or six places," Mr Thomas said.

"It has gone through the roof and put holes in it, which has had a huge amount of water ingress. But it also struck the house with such force, it has cracked the ceilings from front to back on the top floor of the house."

Mr Thomas said he believed the response from agencies dealing with the aftermath of the storm had been inadequate.

"We had the emergency services here late on the Friday when the storm hit," he added.

"We saw blue flashing lights and obviously they would have seen the tree. But nobody knocked on the door to check we were OK.

"I would have liked to have seen things like making sure mobile broadband was available to everyone whose homes were damaged, and an emergency galvanisation of trades to at least do temporary repairs on the worst-damaged properties."

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