Storm Boelo: 83mph gust hits Capel Curig as wind warning stays on north Wales
Archive article. Published on Sun 25 Oct, 09:10. Conditions may have changed since this reporting.
A gust of 83mph was recorded at Capel Curig in Conwy in the early hours of Sunday as Storm Boelo crossed the UK, according to the Met Office's observations for the station. It logged 82mph at 2am and 78mph at 7pm on Saturday. Nine hourly readings between 7pm on Saturday and 6am on Sunday recorded gusts of 70mph or more. The wind was easing by 9am, but gusts were still reaching 66mph.
Capel Curig gusts, Met Office hourly observations
- Highest gust, early Sunday
- 83mph
- Hourly gusts of 70mph or more, 7pm to 6am
- 9
- Gust at 9am Sunday
- 66mph
Warning until 9pm
A Met Office yellow warning of wind covers Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Gwynedd, Anglesey and Wrexham until 9pm on Sunday. It is the only Met Office weather warning in force for Wales. The Met Office's amber warnings for Storm Boelo cover mainland Scotland, parts of Northern Ireland and the far north of England, with the wider yellow warnings extending into north Wales. Chief forecaster Jason Kelly said the storm would bring "the strongest winds and greatest potential for disruption in the north".
Flood warnings ease
Natural Resources Wales listed four flood warnings and 17 flood alerts at 12.08pm, unchanged from 11.09am and down from five warnings and 45 alerts at 7.07am. There are no severe warnings. All four warnings are on the River Ely, at Peterston-super-Ely, Talbot Green, St Fagans and Ely Bridge. The warning for the River Rhondda at Porth has been lifted. Alerts have been lifted on the Taff, Rhymney, Cynon and Neath. Those still in force are mostly on the coast, from the north Wales coastline and the Llyn Peninsula to Cardigan Bay, Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire and Swansea Bay, and on rivers in mid and west Wales including the Teifi, Towy, Dyfi, Wye and Severn.
Power cuts in the south
National Grid's live power cut data for its South Wales network listed 21 unplanned power cuts at 12.05pm, with 1,047 customers confirmed off supply and 208 more expected to be affected. The largest, a high-voltage fault affecting postcodes from Fairwater in west Cardiff to St Nicholas in the Vale of Glamorgan, began at 11.15am and has cut supply to 834 customers. National Grid estimates supply will be restored by 1.30pm. An earlier fault around Trellech in Monmouthshire, which had cut supply to 766 customers, no longer appears in the data. The company says Storm Boelo has caused additional power cuts and that its teams are working around the clock. Power cuts can be reported on 105.
Railways still disrupted
The main line between Cardiff and Bridgend has reopened after flooding, Great Western Railway said at 12.07pm, with disruption to Cardiff to Swansea trains expected until 1.30pm. Transport for Wales says trees at Rhoose and Trefforest have been cleared. In the north, a tree between Bangor and Holyhead is disrupting trains in both directions until 3pm, and another has closed the branch between Llandudno Junction and Llandudno until 3pm. No trains are running west of Carmarthen to Milford Haven, Fishguard Harbour or Pembroke Dock for the rest of Sunday.
Before you set out
Check the Met Office warnings and tfw.wales before travelling, especially on exposed roads and coasts in the north. NRW's live service shows flood warnings for your area, or call Floodline on 0345 988 1188. Report a power cut or damaged power lines on 105, and keep clear of fallen lines.