You will have seen from the media that Storm Eunice is hitting the UK today (Friday 18th February 2022), with some areas of Dorset now within a Met Office Red Warning.
Various bits of guidance and useful information has been issued. The latest from Dorset Council can be found here: https://www.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/emergencies-severe-weather/disrupted-services
Yesterday they issued the following:
The weather conditions tomorrow are expected to cause significant disruption.
Dorset Council have advised schools to close tomorrow (Friday 18 February 2022) due to the severe weather conditions – please see an extract of their message to schools below:
Following our Incident Management Team and Tactical Co-ordinators Group meetings, all schools have been advised to close tomorrow. The amber weather warning has been escalated to a red warning, where national advice is for all persons to stay at home in affected areas.
School transport for Home to School will not be operating tomorrow. This decision has been made in the interests of protecting the safety of children and staff.
Dorset Council Services which have been suspended include, and are not limited to, –
- Council transport, including school and social care
- Closure of day centres
- Closure of all household recycling centres (HRCs, or “the tip”)
- Suspension of bin collections. Do not put your bins out for collection on Friday 18 February. We will attempt to collect rubbish on Saturday 19 February. Food waste will be emptied on your next collection day (Friday 25 February). We hope to collect missed recycling on Saturday 26 February. Garden and commercial waste customers will be contacted separately.
- Libraries and council owned buildings will be closed to the public
- Roads could be closed at short notice
- Durlston Country Park is closed and scheduled performances cancelled
- Go Ape at Moors Valley will be closed tomorrow. Staff will be in touch with anyone who has booked to go there tomorrow.
Any further service disruption due to the storm, which is scheduled to hit the Dorset Council area from 3am until 9am, will be posted here: https://www.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/emergencies-severe-weather/disrupted-services
We are on standby to deal with any issues and may need to close our roads at short notice. If you see a highway issue report it to us.
Other information and guidance has also been published:
The Met Office guidance for staying safe in a storm says:
Before the storm
- Secure loose objects such as ladders, garden furniture or anything else that could be blown into windows and other glazing and break them
- Close and securely fasten doors and windows, particularly those on the windward side of the house, and especially large doors such as those on garages
- Park vehicles in a garage, if available; otherwise keep them clear of buildings, trees, walls and fences
- Close and secure loft trapdoors with bolts, particularly if roof pitch is less than 30°
- If the house is fitted with storm shutters over the windows then ensure that these are closed and fastened
- If chimney stacks are tall and in poor condition, move beds away from areas directly below them
During the storm
- Stay indoors as much as possible
- If you do go out, try not to walk or shelter close to buildings and trees
- Keep away from the sheltered side of boundary walls and fences – if these structures fail, they will collapse on this side
- Do not go outside to repair damage while the storm is in progress
- If possible, enter and leave your house through doors in the sheltered side, closing them behind you
- Open internal doors only as needed, and close them behind you
- Take care when driving on exposed routes such as bridges, or high open roads, delay your journey or find alternative routes if possible
- Slow down and be aware of side winds, particular care should be taken if you are towing or are a high sided vehicle
- Do not drive unless your journey is really necessary
After the storm
- Be careful not to touch any electrical/telephone cables that have been blown down or are still hanging
- Do not walk too close to walls, buildings and trees as they could have been weakened
- Make sure that any vulnerable neighbours or relatives are safe and help them make arrangements for any repairs
Emergency Contact Numbers
- Wessex Water: 0345 600 4600
- Electricity network: https://powertrack.ssen.co.uk/powertrack or call 105
- Dorset Highways (to report blocked roads): 01305 221 020
- Highways England: 0300 123 5000
- Openreach (for phone lines down): 0800 023 2023
- Environment Agency Floodline: 0345 988 1188