Motorist dies after tree falls on car during Storm Henk

A motorist has died after a tree fell on his car in Gloucestershire amid extreme weather conditions during Storm Henk, police have said.

Police were called at around 3.15pm on Tuesday to reports of a large fallen tree on the A433 between Tetbury and Cirencester.

Emergency services, including an air ambulance, attended the incident.

However, the motorist, a man aged in his 50s and from the Bath area, died at the scene.

“The road remains closed as recovery and investigation work continues and motorists are asked to find alternative routes,” a spokesperson for Gloucestershire Police said in a statement.

Storm Henk – latest updates: Major travel disruption as storm clean-up begins

It comes as several major roads have been closed, some train lines have been blocked, while there are hundreds of flood warnings in place across England, Scotland and Wales.

Henk – the eighth of the 2023-24 storm season – brought lashing winds of up to 94mph and heavy rain to some parts of the country on Tuesday.

And more bad weather is expected later this week, with the Met Office issuing a yellow weather warning for rain covering the entire south of England from midday on Thursday until 3am on Friday morning.

The Environment Agency currently has 294 flood warnings in place across England as of Wednesday morning – including one severe warning for the River Nene, in Billing, east of Northampton.

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Hundreds of people have already been evacuated from a nearby holiday park, with the Environment Agency warning of a “danger to life” in the area due to “deep and fast flowing water and a rapid onset of flooding”.

There are a further 336 flood alerts across England. In Wales, there are eight flood warnings, including a severe warning for the River Ritec at Tenby, with a further 32 flood alerts, while in Scotland there is one flood warning and two flood alerts.

On the roads, part of the northbound A1 near Lincolnshire is closed this morning, between the A52 Grantham and the B6326 near Newark due to standing water.

The A52 in Nottinghamshire has also been partially closed between the roundabout for the A60 and the A606 Edwalton, again due to standing water.

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“This morning one lane of the eastbound carriageway has opened, while the westbound remains closed,” a spokesperson for National Highways said.

“However, water is flowing on to the road from saturated adjacent fields and with more rain predicted it is not likely to open any time soon.”

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The A21 in East Sussex is also closed between the A2100 near Johns Cross and the A28 near Baldslow because of flooding and a fallen tree which is resting on power cables above the carriageway.

Meanwhile, train operators across southern regions of England and Wales have warned journeys on Wednesday morning could be delayed by up to 90 minutes or cancelled as they recover from the strong winds.

Network Rail Wessex – covering the counties of Surrey, Berkshire, Hampshire, Dorset, Somerset and Wiltshire – say its teams have been working “non-stop” to remove trees and debris from lines in the area.

“Most lines are clear and open, but check before you travel to make sure your journey isn’t impacted today,” it said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, with a picture of a fallen tree blocking one line and one near to another.

South Western Rail said they were “deeply sorry” for Tuesday’s delays but added they expect train disruption to continue due to “trains and crews being displaced”, urging commuters to check before they travel.

Gusts of 94mph were recorded on the Isle of Wight on Tuesday and fallen trees blocked a rail line in Hastings – causing major delays.

Exeter Airport was hit with gusts of 81mph, while winds reached 71mph at the Isle of Portland in Dorset and Mumbles Head in South Wales.

The Energy Networks Association – which collates data from all energy providers – estimated that 10,000 customers were without power on Wednesday morning.

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