It has been a wild 36 hours and everyone on Jersey is talking about it.

They all experienced a storm they were all warned of – but they could never have imagined the scale.

Wandering down a side street, some 200 metres from the coast, there are crumbled remnants of family homes.

Tiles have been blown off roofs, a playground is a mangled mess of bent lamp posts, twisted fences and collapsed bricks from the neighbouring houses.

We count more than 20 windows of homes that’ve been shattered by flying roof tiles and the gale force winds.

Cars with punctured windscreens line the road as if they’ve been deliberately vandalised. The wind did this.

Roger Iddon has lived here for almost 10 years. His family of five and pet dog are safe but he is in awe of what they survived.

“I thought I was going to die” he says.

He watched Storm Ciaran approach from his bedroom window – and it took seconds to cause damage.

“(At one point) the wind stopped blowing and it went calm – but then all of a sudden I saw this wall of debris come at the house and it was like the sound of a jet engine,” Roger says.

“(There was) just a loud deafening roar and then the window started to break in front of me and smash.

“I stood away from it and I could hear the whole house shake and the roof lifting, all the cars getting smashed up. It was just a terrifying 30 seconds.

“I thought that’s it, we’re all going to die.”

Roger’s terrifying experience is shared by those on his street. Many have been offered hotel rooms as temporary accommodation but his family and another four have decided to stay in their homes.

The community is rallying together to help those displaced from their homes and to revive streets that are littered in debris.

The Salvation Army has already been helping those caught up in the damage.

Husband and wife Alice and Richard lead the team here.

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“I think as an island we’ve been through a lot,” Alice says.

“I really feel for our island, it’s sad and it’s hard and everyone just wants to feel safe and many people just don’t right now.

“I think we’ve all been affected. I’ve spoken to some people and thankfully their homes and stuff are fine, but they’re really worried about their neighbours.

“I’ve got some people who can’t work today because their place of work is not in a good state.”

Richard says they’ve already seen first hand the impact it’s had on people here.

“We know there are people that haven’t been able financially… of buy enough food and stuff for their homes to ride the storm out and so they’re short now,” he adds.

“Our food banks (are) open and we’re deliberately targeting anyone who’s been unable to bulk buy.

“We’re also really aware that a lot of people haven’t got a warm, safe space, or perhaps they feel really anxious about being in their homes after a really difficult night.

“So again, we’re providing a warm, safe space here.”

The need for them and other support groups will only grow as this island rebuilds with fierce determination – something this storm certainly hasn’t hampered.

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