Fallen trees, road and rail disruption and injuries as Storm Pia hit Derbyshire

Storm Pia swept into Derbyshire overnight and wreaked havoc on trees, buildings and anything else that was not securely tied down. As daylight broke across the county and winds gusted up to 60-65mph in places, it soon became apparent that, for many people, it would be a day of disruption on both the roads and railways^[1].

With no signs of the wind speed and gusts abating, most of Thursday morning was littered with reports of trees blown down across the county. Derbyshire County Council has said that it is aware of at least 70 trees which were uprooted.

Two trees fell on the A515 between Sudbury and Ashbourne^[2] - one of which fell onto a car being driven by. It resulted in the driver being taken to hospital by ambulance and the road being closed for several hours until later on Thursday afternoon while the scene was cleared.

Elsewhere, a Derby Texaco petrol station^[3] close to Five Lamps, in Kedleston Street, was forced to close after a tree fell onto the forecourt. The tree was left resting on top of the forecourt roof.

POLL: Christmas music quiz^[4]

Several trees fell in the city including in Friar Gate, Osmaston Road near to the Bradshaw Way junction, Markeaton Lane, Station Road in Mickleover^[5] and on the canal path in Chellaston. Some of the falls resulted in blocked roads for a while until the toppled trees could be removed.

Further afield, a tree crashed into a house in Stanley village and another fell across the road through Breadsall village - both roads still remaining partially blocked into Thursday evening. Trees were also reported down in Morley, Whatstandwell and on the A6 at Topley Pike.

Hundreds of homes across the county also experienced blackouts, including Smalley and Parwich, as power lines went down. As night started to fall, 3,500 properties were still without power in the East Midlands, according to National Grid. They warned that Storm Pia had particularly affected Derbyshire and the Peak District.

A decision was taken early in the day to close the Upper Derwent visitor centre, in Fairholmes,^[6] near Bamford, because of the high winds which brought down trees and a power line, blocking access to the centre and also the bike hire facility. A social media message about the closure concluded by saying: "The whole site is unsafe to open to visitors today."

One area which was badly hit was Duffield - which is only just recovering from the effects of Storm Babet two months ago when large parts of the village were flooded^[7]. This time, the winds brought down trees and power cables. A large number of smashed chimney stacks were left as debris on the ground, following a morning of 50-60mph gusts.

A tree on the rail line between Burton and Derby disrupted services, as did a similar incident between Derby and Matlock - where a bus replaced the normal train timetable.

By mid-afternoon, the winds had died down from their earlier intensity but more windy conditions were expected overnight into Friday and throughout the day, accompanied by more rain. The wind speeds are, however, not expected to be anything like those of Thursday.

References

1. ^{^} it would be a day of disruption on both the roads and railways (www.derbytelegraph.co.uk)
2. ^{^} A515 between Sudbury and Ashbourne (www.derbytelegraph.co.uk)
3. ^{^} Derby Texaco petrol station (www.derbytelegraph.co.uk)
4. ^{^} Christmas music quiz (xd.wayin.com)
5. ^{^} Mickleover (www.derbytelegraph.co.uk)
6. ^{^} Upper Derwent visitor centre, in Fairholmes, (www.derbytelegraph.co.uk)
7. ^{^} large parts of the village were flooded (www.derbytelegraph.co.uk)