Summary

  • The Met Office warns Storm Darragh poses an imminent risk to life across parts of the South West

  • A red warning has been lifted but an amber wind warning remains in place until 21:00 GMT, with gusts of 70 to 80mph expected

  • A yellow wind warning is then in force until 06:00 on Sunday

  • More than 36,000 homes in Devon and Cornwall are without power

  • Fallen trees block roads across both counties and rail and air services have been disrupted

Live Reporting

  1. RNLI crew go to rescue of stricken vessel

    Volunteer crew from Exmouth RNLI launched in the challenging conditions of Storm Darragh to check there was no-one on board a drifting motor vessel.

    The Exmouth relief All-Weather lifeboat, 13-32, David & Ruth Arthur, with six volunteer crew onboard, took to the waves following a call from the coastguard.

    A spokesman for the volunteer team said: "There were sustained wind speeds of 60mph plus (58 knots) and challenging seas."

    Once the crew had confirmed there was no-one on board, the Exmouth Coxswain monitored the vessel and decided it presented a hazard to other shipping and needed to be retrieved.

    "The coxswain was able to skillfully manoeuvre the lifeboat alongside the drifting vessel in difficult breaking swell and, after a number of attempts, was able to safely place a crew member onboard," the spokesman said.

    "The lifeboat volunteers then worked to secure a tow to the vessel and take it under control for a slow tow back to Exmouth Marina.

    "Satisfied that the vessel was secured alongside,our cold and wet volunteers returned to the station at 13:10 GMT to wash down the lifeboat and prepare it for its next service.

    "A good result in difficult conditions, that reinforce again the need for all boat owners to ensure that the ground and deck tackle on their vessels is suitably robust to deal with forecast weather conditions."

    A small pleasure craft tethered to the back of a lifeboat by a tellow rope, There are two red rings on the back of the lifeboatExmouth RNLI

  2. 'Unusual' for wind to hit for so long

    Dan Downs
    BBC South West weather presenter

    Winds have picked up again in the past hour or two, with gusts of 67mph (107km/h) recorded in the Isles of Scilly, 68mph (109km/h) in Bodmin and 70mph (112km/h) at Newquay.

    The Met Office amber warning for wind remains in force until 21:00 GMT and a yellow warning for wind is in place until 06:00 on Sunday.

    It is very unusual for a low pressure system to bring winds for so long.

    The wind is generally coming in from a north-westerly direction, becoming more northerly later and turning north-easterly on Sunday as the low pressure system begins to move away from us.

  3. 'Heck of a sight' in the Isles of Scilly

    Will Lethbridge
    BBC Radio Cornwall

    Moored boats battling the waves in the Isles of ScillyBBC / Weather Watcher RockHopper

    I'm in St Mary's and it has been a heck of a sight looking out towards the harbour with the boats bobbing up and down.

    It's been rather wet and rather wild 24 hours, but from what I've heard, there's no major damage.

    Islanders are taking a pragmatic approach to this storm - just staying at home and not doing a huge amount.

    It's the perfect day to put up the Christmas decorations at home.

  4. Unstable and leaning trees on A386

    Devon County Council Highways says on X: "We have recieved reports of unstable and leaning trees on the A386 between Great Torrington and Weare Giffard. Please drive with caution."

  5. More than 36,000 homes without power

    The number of properties without power in Devon and Cornwall has exceeded 36,000.

    Almost 100 incidents, affecting 25,375 homes in Devon, were being dealt with and a further 50 incidents, affecting 10,735 homes, in Cornwall.

    National Grid said its engineering teams were working hard in challenging weather conditions to restore power supplies and support customers.

    Emma Pamplin, the grid's director of customer excellence, said: "We’d like to thank our customers for their patience as we deal with a high volume of calls. Please be aware that call wait times are currently longer than usual.

    “Being without power during a storm can be worrying and I want to reassure people we are doing all we can to restore supplies as quickly as possible.

    “We are continuing to support our most vulnerable customers.”

  6. Roof blown off boat park building

    Lisa Young
    BBC News Online

    High winds have blown a roof off a building in a boat yard in Falmouth.

    The roof has been swept off the wooden Allspars building in the Grove Place Boat Park and has come to rest across a number of small craft laid up for winter.

    A single-storey wooden building is missing its roof. The sea and opposite mainland are in the background and a parked van and a boat in the foreground.Submitted
    The boatyard is full of laid-up boats. A section of roof has been blown across the yard and is resting on a boat. Royal Navy boats can be seen across the sea in the docks in the background.Submitted

  7. In pictures: Wet and windy scenes across South West

    Here is a selection of your images from across Devon and Cornwall sent in by BBC Weather Watchers.

    A view looking over a palm tree roofs of houses towards choppy conditions in the sea. There is a sea wall, a beach and houses pictured in the background.BBC / Weather Watcher Yen Milne

    Picturesque St Ives in Cornwall is battling windy conditions

    A choppy brown river with several moored boats and trees by the river banks.BBC / Weather Watcher Alan O

    The wind whips up waves on the normally quiet waters of the River Exe at Topsham

    Reflections of houses are seen in a puddle on a brick path with pebbles to one sideBBC / Weather Watcher Jim

    Reflections on a puddle in Sidmouth in Devon

  8. The show must go on!

    While some events have been cancelled due to Storm Darragh, the show is going on at the Hall for Cornwall in Truro.

    The theatre said Saturday's performances of Jack And The Beanstalk were going ahead as planned but people would not miss out if they could not travel.

    A spokesman for the theatre said: "If you’ve booked tickets to attend today, we’re sending you an email shortly with options to exchange tickets without charge if you are unable to attend due to travel problems.

    "The box office team are extremely busy making arrangements for audiences, so please bear with us!"

    A brown brick theatre building with posters advertising showsGoogle

  9. 'It's like being in a pint of Guinness'

    A man in a green jacket battling the wind on a seafront with a truck parked in the background.Rob Braddick

    Rob Braddick, who runs bars and restaurants in Westward Ho! in north Devon, says the village is experiencing "extremely windy" conditions.

    "It's almost like you're in the middle of a pint of Guinness," he says.

    "It's just a lot of foam being thrown over the promenade and on to the buildings.

    "Chairs have gone everywhere - we tied them down yesterday but they've managed to break free and go tumbling down the promenade.

    "It's pretty dangerous out there."

    A bird's eye view of a promenade with sea foam on it and a choppy sea in the background.Rob Braddick

  10. Newquay airport closes due to adverse weather

    Cornwall Airport Newquay has closed due to the weather conditions and no further flights are scheduled for the rest of the day.

    In a post on Facebook, it said the airport would reopen at 06:00 GMT on Sunday.

    Most flights have been taking off as normal at Exeter Airport, with the exception of flights to and from Jersey.

    There have been several cancellations and extensive delays further afield at Bristol Airport.

  11. More than 30,000 homes now without power

    More than 30,000 homes across Devon and Cornwall are now without power due to Storm Darragh.

    At 1400 GMT, the National Grid reported problems affecting 22198 homes in Devon and a further 11,755 homes in Cornwall.

    National Grid said heavy winds and rain were affecting its entire network, with teams working extremely hard to restore any customers without power.

    You can track the status of a power cut here.

  12. Trains resume between Plymouth and Penzance

    Great Western Railway says it is now running a limited service between Plymouth and Penzance after trains were earlier suspended.

    It says trains are still not able to run on all Cornish branch lines and between Barnstaple and Okehampton.

  13. Major Truro road closed due to falling solar panels

    Lisa Young
    BBC News Online

    A main road into Truro was closed earlier after solar panels were blown off the roof of a commercial building.

    Police closed Tregolls Road in both directions after the incident at the PKF Francis Clark building.

    Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service station manager Jonathan Brooker said: "We've got solar panels which have blown off the top of the roof.

    "At the minute they've blown to the back of the property, away from the road.

    "We're currently just assessing if any more of the panels will come off."

    "We're liaising with build control as to what our next steps are," he added.

    The road reopened at about 11:50 GMT.

    Jonathan Brooker is wearing high-viz uniform and is standing on the footpath along Tregolls Road next to the PKF Francis Clark building. There is a police car and uniformed officers behind him and police incident tape.

  14. Tamar Bridge closes to high-sided vehicles

    The Tamar Bridge, which connects Devon and Cornwall, has been closed to high-sided vehicles due to strong winds.

    Tamar Crossings says the main deck of the bridge is experiencing gusts of between 55-65mph (88km/h-104km/h).

    "We are closed to high-sided vehicles, caravans, motorcycles and wind susceptible vehicles," it says on X.

    The ferry service has also been reduced.

  15. Runaway giant Christmas bauble in Truro

    Lisa Young
    BBC News Online

    A giant Christmas bauble decoration known for lighting up a roundabout in Truro has become loose.

    The red wire-frame bauble was swept from the roundabout on Morlaix Avenue and blown across the road before coming to rest on the footpath.

    It has been secured to a lamppost with rope until the storm passes.

    The giant red bauble is tied to a lamp-post on a footpath to the side of the road.

  16. Storm Darragh sweeps in

    A fallen tree blocking a road under cloudy skiesBBC/Johnny Rutherford

    Here's a quick round-up of the situation in Devon and Cornwall:

    • The red warning affecting part of north Devon has expired but an amber warning for wind has been extended until 06:00 GMT Sunday across the South West
    • Power cuts are affecting nearly 15,000 properties in Devon and about 9,000 in Cornwall
    • Fallen trees are causing havoc on the roads and police are reminding motorists to only travel if "absolutely necessary"
    • Great Western Railway is not running any trains between Plymouth and Penzance due to multiple obstacles on the rail line
    • A number of Christmas events have been called off and many visitor attractions are shut for the day

  17. Bristol Bears v Exeter Chiefs postponed

    Exeter Chiefs Women's match against Bristol Bears Women, which was due to take place in Bristol on Saturday afternoon, has been postponed.

    Posting on X, Bristol Bears said following an inspection of Ashton Gate and pitch this morning, and with further high winds forecast, it was considered unsafe for supporters to attend the game.

  18. Another weather warning issued

    Dan Downs
    Weather presenter, BBC South West

    The Met Office has issued another warning for Sunday.

    A yellow warning for strong winds is now in place until 06:00 GMT on Sunday.

    We've lost the red warning now, but an amber warning is still in place right across the South West until 21:00 GMT.

    There still could be gusts of 70mph (112km/h) to perhaps 80mph (128km/h) along the north coast of Devon in particular.

    The low pressure system we are having is unusual because it is bringing very prolonged winds as it moves across the country.

  19. 'The waves are mountainous'

    David Dixon
    BBC News, Cornwall

    It is actually quite beautiful here in the Godrevy area in Cornwall.

    The wind is blowing really hard, but here 20-30m back from the sea safely on the road, it's a pleasant place to be.

    The waves are mountainous in the way they hit the lighthouse on Godrevy Island, creating huge great explosions of foam.

    Looking over towards St Ives Bay, you can see huge rollers coming in that look like big white horses - you cannot tell what is waves and what is break.

    In Portreath, where I was earlier, it was a nightmare - I was blasted by sand and it was really unpleasant.

    Water spray over a harbour wall with some buildings in the background. The sea is churned up.

  20. Multiple obstacles on rail lines - Network Rail

    Great Western Railway is not running any trains between Plymouth and Penzance.

    Nick Million, from Network Rail, says: "We have multiple trees down and multiple obstacles that have blown on the lines."

    Cornwall Council is reminding motorists to avoid the roads if possible while weather warnings remain in place.

    Martyn Alvey, the council's portfolio holder with responsibility for the environment, says crews are trying to minimise the impact as best they can.