Villagers facing third night without heat or light since Storm Arwen

VILLAGERS in Croft, Warrington, are facing a third night with no heat or light following storm Arwen on Friday night.

Local Cllr. Valerie Allen who lives on one of the affected roads on Sandy Brow and Stone Pitt Lanes said “I and other residents have repeatedly tried to call Electricity NW on the emergency number 105, all we get is an updated message saying they are trying to get to those without power as soon as they can and for a contact number to be given at the end of the call so that their team can call you back.

“The problem persists with no callback.

“My concern is that this hasn’t even been logged and there is no way of doing so. This system is not fit for purpose.”

Cllr. Allen added: “Elderly residents and those with children are suffering with no heat or light and no idea when it is going to be resolved.

“I understand so many have been affected by the storm but we need assurances that we are in the system and will get power soon!”

The latest update from Electricity North West says good progress has been made in difficult and cold conditions today, restoring power to another 5,000 properties this afternoon taking the number restored since Friday to 77,000. Around 11,000 remain without power with many expected to be off overnight.

Steph Trubshaw, Incident Manager, said: “Speaking with our frontline teams and hearing what people are going through is driving us to continue our repairs to the network as quickly as possible. We still have more than 100 separate issues on the network spread over a vast area and we won’t stop until we have restored every last property.”

Repairs to the network include removing trees from lines, and repairing broken lines and poles that have been damaged by flying debris and falling trees.

Anyone without power now should prepare to be without power overnight.

Steph Trubshaw added: “This is a really difficult situation for everyone, please do try to keep warm and keep trying to get through to us if you need us. We are prioritising calls and call backs to those who are in most need. We’re continuing to work with the emergency services and other agencies to provide support where we can.

“In some areas we have been able to provide food vans and other support but due to the vast scale of this incident getting to everyone just isn’t possible so we ask people to bear with us and check on their neighbours to provide support locally. I assure you we are doing all we can and are continuing to work tirelessly to repair every damaged part of the network to restore power.”

Customers are advised to check the website and social media for updates and advice, and only call 105 if the issue is urgent to help prioritise those who need help most, or to report dangerous situations such as fallen lines.