Video: Railway chaos in Yorkshire after super-storm

Rail services on the East Coast Main Line between Leeds and London were thrown into chaos today, with multiple incidents involving overhead power lines and fallen trees stopping trains running on the route south of Peterborough.

A British Airways flight from Heathrow to Leeds Bradford Airport was also cancelled after parts of southern Britain were lashed by winds of up to 100mph.

Heavy rain in Yorkshire today (Oct 28) led to additional problems for rush-hour motorists, with surface water causing hazardous driving conditions on the M62 between Rothwell and Goole as well as on the A1(M) near Dishforth, north of Harrogate.

The Met Office had a severe weather warning in place across Yorkshire from midnight on Sunday through to midday today. (Oct 28)

Yet despite the travel headaches, Nick Prebble, a forecaster with the MeteoGroup weather organisation, told the Yorkshire Evening Post that the Broad Acres had escaped relatively lightly compared to other areas.

He said four millimetres of rain had fallen in parts of Yorkshire from 6pm on Sunday to 6am today, (Oct 28) while the total in some southern regions had been closer to 50 millimetres. Local wind speeds had also climbed no higher than 30 or 35mph, added Mr Prebble.

Nationwide, falling trees killed a man in his 50s as he drove through Watford and a 17-year-old girl as she slept in a static caravan in Hever, Kent.

The body of a third victim was found at an address in Hounslow, west London, after a felled tree triggered a suspected gas explosion. Hundreds of thousands of homes were left without power following the storm, which was named St Jude after the patron saint of lost causes.

VILLAGERS TELL OF FEAR AT TORNADO

VILLAGERS have told of the moment a 50ft-high tornado ripped through their community at 100mph.

The tornado left a trail of destruction in its wake for a quarter-of-a-mile around the Easingwold Road area of Huby, near Otley. Trees were uprooted and damage done to buildings during Friday evening’s two minutes of chaos.

One resident, Rob Halliwell, 34, said: “This noise came from nowhere. It was a roaring sound. I have never heard anything like it.” Betty Tyson, 76, added: “We heard this crash and thought the conservatory had fallen down.”

North Yorkshire Fire Service cordoned off Easingwold Road after a tree fell onto a car. The vehicle’s occupants escaped the incident unhurt.