Preparations for Storm Bella are well underway as engineers from Electricity North West will be on standby for the second name storm of the season.
The firm, which operates the region’s power network, is stepping up its preparations following the yellow weather warning issued by the Met Office for the North West and the rest of the UK.
An amber warning has also been issued for parts of south Wales and across southern England.
Gusts of up to 65mph, which could cause damage to overhead power lines as debris and trees affect the network, are expected. Electricity North West is increasing the number of engineers on standby with colleagues across the organisation monitoring the forecast to respond.
Sam Loukes, incident manager at Electricity North West, said: “Our preparations for Storm Bella are well underway.
“Our teams monitor the weather daily and while we always have teams on standby, we can ramp this up where particularly bad weather is forecast.
“Our plans are well practiced, and we will have local teams available to respond quickly on the ground, as well as teams in our control room to monitor and respond to any situation to keep power flowing across the region. Our customer team will also be available, and we’ll be sending out regular updates via our social media channels.
“We invest money throughout the year to ensure our network is resilient as possible but when the weather hits, we make sure our response is as quick as possible.
“If anybody does see any damage to overhead lines or electricity equipment, we urge them to stay away and report it to us immediately by calling 105.”
You can view any live power cut information in the region on Electricity North West’s website here, get in touch on Twitter or Facebook, or by calling for free on 105 from any phone.
Electricity North West offers extra support to customers through their Priority Services Register. For more information and to register visit www.enwl.co.uk/priority .
Customers can stay safe and prepare themselves in the event of potential power cuts by following the simple advice here www.enwl.co.uk/power-cuts/helpful-tips .
You can see how Electricity North West prepares the network throughout the year by watching this video.
