Storm Evert batters South West with Strong Winds and Heavy Rain

Storm Evert causes major disruption in the South West of England, leading to several rescues off the Isles of Scilly.

Initially, an amber warning was issue by the Met Office in Cornwall for Thursday night. A yellow wind warning for the south west region included gusts up to 75mph (121km/h). However, the winds are expected to ease from around 07:00 BST on Friday.

Crew are “exhausted” as the St Mary’s and Sennen RNLI lifeboats were in action overnight. Throughout the night, Falmouth Coastguard reacted to over 20 incidents off the islands, 28 miles (45km) from Cornwall. Many of these involved rescuing people from their yachts. At least four yachts needed people airlifting to safety by a rescue helicopter.

Coastguard Paddy Cochran says it can become life threatening very quickly when you’re onboard a yacht that is blown towards the rocks.

Elsewhere, there are reports of roads in Cornwall blocked by fallen trees on Friday.

A stressful night

Some guests at campsites were relocated to try to protect them from the elements, while others decided to pack up and go. Campers were forced to leave their tents due to the gale force winds.

One family who travelled all the way to Perranporth from London ended up spending the night in their car after their tent was destroyed. Camper Alice Cresswell says it was a “stressful night”, and cold in the car. But they had no choice but to escape the tent following its collapse in the early hours of the morning. she describes it as a “really scary” experience as the car was “shaking a lot”. The family just wasn’t prepared for the situation.

Another camper, Matthew Szczepkowski, says his night was “absolutely horrendous” because of the gale force winds. He says it was non-stop all night, with everything blowing about, and the car moving. But any hopes of things dying down in the morning were dashed as it just got worse instead of better.

The highest gust so far, recorded in St Mary’s in the Isles of Scilly, was 69mph (111km/h).

A campsite on the Isles of Scilly had to move some of their visitors into a community hall overnight. It is the worst storm they have ever experienced at the site in the six years they have been there. Owner Tom Matthews says “the strength of the wind and the gusts last night was just something else”. They had to do whatever they could to ensure the safety of their guests. They couldn’t let the weather put people in potential danger.

An unnecessary risk

Cornwall Coastguard James Instance warned people against taking an early morning swim, calling it “a risk you don’t need to take”. If the sea looks unusually choppy and rough, you could get into difficulty from rip currents.

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