Flying Shed Dodges Mum and Daughter in Storm Eowyn Chaos
The heart-stopping moment a metal shed was whipped through the air by Storm Eowyn and narrowly avoided hitting Louise Haggarty and her nine-year-old daughter Lily in Wrexham, North Wales, provides a vivid example of the chaos caused by the powerful storm.
The Dangerous Flight of a Restructured Home Addition
Neighbouring CCTV captured the terrifying scene as Louise Haggarty and Lily made their way to Lily’s school. As they approached their car, a shed from across the street suddenly hurtled through the air, lodging just outside their front gate.
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Louise recounted the harrowing experience: “I was taking my daughter to school due to the wind being so bad. If we had come out of the house seconds later, the shed would have hit us both. Watching the CCTV back has made me so sad and upset to think we could have been seriously hurt. People need to be very careful when going out. I feel so lucky we were unharmed.”
Storm Eowyn’s Devastating Impact
Winds during Storm Eowyn reached up to 100 mph, leaving a trail of destruction across the UK and Ireland. The storm claimed one life in Ireland, where a tree fell on a car in Raphoe, County Donegal, resulting in the death of a man. Additionally, the storm caused significant disruptions, with more than a million people losing power and numerous rail services, flights, and ferries cancelled.
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Extreme gusts were recorded at Drumalbin in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, reaching 100 mph, the strongest gust recorded in the UK so far. In Ireland, a record-breaking wind speed of 183 kmh (114 mph) was measured in Mace Head, Co Galway.
Travel Disruptions and Emergency Services Overwhelmed
Air travel was severely affected, with Tourism Economics reporting that almost 20% of scheduled flights to and from airports in the UK and Ireland were cancelled. Cirium indicated that a total of 1,124 flights were called off, with Dublin, Edinburgh, Heathrow, and Glasgow airports experiencing the highest cancellations.
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Emergency services were overwhelmed, dealing with numerous downed trees and damaged buildings. In Amble, Northumberland, a roof was blown off by strong winds, resting precariously on some bungalows.
