Islanders are left counting the costs this morning after a night of hurricane-force winds and heavy rain left a trail of destruction which brought down power lines, destroyed vehicles and caused Island-wide coastal flooding.
Wind speeds reached an incredible 104mph at The Needles yesterday evening, with the high winds leading to the suspension of all cross-Solent services, with Wightlink’s Portsmouth-Fishbourne ferry notably having difficulty berthing an all ready department vessel resulting in 5 hour delays for some travelers. The service was partially run, but on a trip-by-trip basis and with long delays.
Many arterial routes were forced to close when large trees brought down high voltage power cables in Arreton, Rookley, Newport and Wroxall and Islanders were advised to only travel if absolutely necessary.
Firefighters from the Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service assisted home owners and Island Roads operatives in pumping flood water away from town centres and placing sandbags to protect properties when East Cowes, Cowes and Yarmouth began to flood to considerable depths.
Many readers are describing last night’s stormy weather as the worse in many years, with the Environment Agency saying the tides were at their highest in 20 years.
In Newport, a van was completely destroyed when several tons of bricks fell from the top of a building, plummeting down onto the roof of the company’s vehicle below. Meanwhile in Sandown, vehicles were moved across the carriageway from their parked positions with huge, powerful waves breaching the seawall and onto the vulnerable Esplanade.
Around 120 residents are without power in the West Wight and Newport areas this morning, according to a SSE spokesperson.
Here is a selection of photographs sent in by readers from across the Island.
Photo by Donna Woodward-Taylor
Photo by Mark Hammond
Photo by Darren Cottingham
Photo by Annie Adams
Photo credits: Featured Image – Mike Winter; Yarmouth – Destination Yarmouth; Sandown – Billy Usher
