Electricity North West engineers have restored power to more than 16,900 properties following treacherous overnight conditions.
High winds topping 55mph and heavy rain hit large parts of Cumbria and Lancashire causing more than 17,600 properties to lose power across 43 separate incidents on the power network.
Teams of engineers on standby responded immediately and worked tirelessly through the night in the testing conditions and have been able to restore power to over 95 per cent of those affected. As of 11:20am engineers are working to restore the remaining 670 properties.
Stephanie Trubshaw, Electricity North West’s customer services and connections director, said: “It has been an extremely busy period as we experienced high winds for a prolonged period of time.
“The majority of the incidents on the power network have been caused by trees and other debris falling on overhead power lines but despite these issues, we responded quickly and have been able to restore power to thousands of properties.
“Our teams will continue to work throughout the day, so power can be restored as quickly and as safely as possible.”
Outstanding faults are spread across Cumbria and Lancashire, colleagues from across the business are making outbound calls to all impacted customers, prioritising those who may be vulnerable to a loss of electricity.
Any additional faults reported this morning, engineers are also attending to as normal.
Electricity North West is also warning of further disruptive weather which could hit the North West later this evening.
Stephanie Trubshaw added: “Our aim is to have the remaining customers affected by the high winds restored today.
“As we always say, should customers see any damage to the power network, firstly they should stay away but also report it to us by calling 105.
“Despite the worst of the weather passing, we’re also expecting further strong winds to return later this evening across Cumbria, Lancashire and the Peak district.
“If people do need extra help during a power cut, I’d encourage them to sign up for our Extra Care Register, so we are able to prioritise assistance if affected.”
Electricity North West offers extra support to customers through Extra Care Register. For more information and to register visit www.enwl.co.uk/extracare.
Live power cut information in the region is available at www.enwl.co.uk/livepowercuts, and the network can be contacted on Twitter or Facebook, or by calling for free on 105 from any phone.
Customers can stay safe and prepare themselves in the event of potential power cuts by following the simple advice here enwl.co.uk/power-cuts/helpful-tips.
