Hurricane Bert Causes Power Outages And Travel Disrupts In England And Ireland

JAKARTA - Tens of thousands of houses, agriculture, and businesses in Ireland experienced power outages due to Hurricane Bert on Saturday, November 23, 2024. Meanwhile, several railway and road lines were closed in the UK.

According to local Meteorological Office weather forecasts, yellow weather warnings for wind, rain, snow, and ice also apply in most parts of the UK.

Images and videos on social media show snow blocking roads in parts of England. Meanwhile, floodwater was seen rising onto a parked car in the city of Killybegs, Donegal, an Irish neighboring country.

"When we pass the first part of Saturday morning, the (storm) will begin to show its direction in Scotland, northern Wales and northern England, with the potential for heavy snowfall, especially in the highlands."

"Badai Bert is what we call a'multi-dangerous event', which brings snow, rain and wind to Great Britain for most of the weekend," said Head of the Great Britain Meteorological Office, Jason Kelly, as reported by Reuters.

Meanwhile, the Irish Meteorological Service set out a "red status" rain warning for the densely populated areas of Cork and Galway Friday, November 22, 2024, evening.

The heavy rain caused flooding in parts of Ireland's western coast, making some roads impassable.

Several rail services, such as the Inverness-Elgin and Aberdeen-Inverture routes, which are popular among tourists in Scotland, have been suspended due to weather.

In Ireland, the ESB Networks said strong winds from the storm had caused power outages impacting 60,000 homes, farms and businesses overnight, particularly in the country's western and northwestern parts.

"ESB Networks crew and contractors were deployed and (medium) restored electricity in the affected areas if it was safe to do," read an ESB Networks statement, warning of further power outages over the weekend.