Storm Dudley: Trees down and rail disruption in the East of England
- Published
A tree has come down in St Neots in Cambridgeshire
High winds from Storm Dudley have led to travel disruption and fallen trees across the East of England.
Train services are disrupted in parts of Buckinghamshire after a freight train hit a fallen tree at Beaconsfield.
There was damage to overhead cables in Luton and St Albans on Wednesday night, which caused train services to be cancelled between London and Bedford.
Norfolk Police warned drivers to take care because of fallen trees.
Network Rail East Midlands said its teams worked all night to repair the damage to the overhead cables in Luton and St Albans.
However, it advised customers to check their journeys as some services were being cancelled.
"Services will be reduced today as we've got more work to do tonight," the company said on Twitter.
Thameslink said two of the four lines were now open.
Train operator Greater Anglia said its services in Hertfordshire had been affected after "plastic sheeting caught on the overhead electric wires, external between Broxbourne and Hertford East", blocking some lines.
Norfolk Police had warned drivers to take care because of a number of fallen trees
Weatherquest and BBC forecaster Dan Holley said Storm Dudley "gave us gusts up to 64mph (102km/h)".
"I know we had some power outages and trees down - and that's a pre-cursor of what's to come," he said.
"We are expecting some very strong winds tomorrow and for a number of hours so it's not going to be a short duration event."
In Norfolk, police urged motorists to drive with caution as they were "receiving reports of trees down and debris on various roads across Norfolk as Storm Dudley makes itself known".
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The Met Office has declared an amber warning for wind, external from 03:00 to 21:00 GMT on Friday for much of England.
It has warned of significant disruption and danger to life from Storm Eunice, with gusts of up to 80mph (128km/h).
Councillor Charles Royden, who is responsible for environment at Bedford Borough Council, warned people to "take some time to get prepared".
"The Met Office is warning of flying debris, damage to homes likely, impact on transport such as railway lines and bridges, and the potential for power cuts," he said.
The wisteria on St James Mill in Norwich was another storm casualty, with much of it tumbling to the ground
Some places in the East of England have already announced that they will not be opening on Friday, including Waddesdon Manor, external, Wendover Woods, external, Whipsnade Zoo, external and Woburn Safari Park, external.
The Love Light Norwich Festival, external said it had cancelled its programme on Friday, with outdoor events planned for Saturday being moved indoors where possible.
The A12 between Darsham and Blythburgh in Suffolk was blocked when a tree fell on Wednesday night
In Southend, one of the light displays forming part of the LuminoCity, external event had to be taken down on the seafront on Wednesday, because of the high winds.
In Cambridge, Addenbrooke's Hospital announced its drive-through blood testing service at the Newmarket Road park and ride would be closed on Friday., external
"With a forecast of extremely high winds the service, which is based in marquees, will be closed in the interests of public safety," a statement said.
Travel disruption is also expected with roads, bridges and railway lines likely to close, causing delays and cancellations.
East Midlands Railway, external (EMR) has advised customers to consider travelling on Thursday and Saturday to avoid possible disruption from Friday's storm.
It said it expected "significant disruption" across the network and trains would be required to travel much slower than normal.
High winds damaged scaffolding in March, Cambridgeshire, on Wednesday
Meanwhile, Greater Anglia has announced a reduced service on Friday, external and advised against non-essential travel.
"Due to storm Eunice hitting the Anglia region on Friday 18 February we will be reducing the timetable," its website stated.
"Trains will be running at a reduced speed imposed by Network Rail, due to high winds."
National Highways said the Orwell Bridge in Suffolk would close at 04:00 GMT on Friday for safety reasons due to high winds.
Wind speeds will be monitored but it said the bridge could be closed for most of the day.
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