Storm Dudley: What to do if you have a power cut during the storm and how long could it last

The Met Office forecasts are predicting gale force winds from Storm Dudley on Wednesday and Thursday and Storm Eunice on Friday.

Wind speeds are forecast to be 60 to 70mph with potential for gusts of up to 80mph in places, even 90mph in exposed areas.

The company as such are predicting a 'high likelihood' that there will be some disruption to power supplies.

Paul Glendinning, Director of Policy and Markets, said: "We are closely tracking the weather and have ensured that our resources are in place to respond if the forecasted back-to-back storms impact our network.

"Our network control engineers have capability to restore power supplies remotely, switching electricity through alternative routes on our network wherever possible to get customers back on supply. In parallel our frontline workforce will be deployed to carry out local switching and repairs to restore power as safely and quickly as the conditions allow.”

Customers with a disability, medical condition or very young families, who may need greater assistance during a power cut and have signed up to the company's Priority Services Membership, will be kept updated as a priority.

Northern Powergrid have pledged to apply lessons learned from Storm Arwen in relation to keeping customers updated.

They have however, warned that in the early stages of outages they will be unable to give precise estimates of restoration until damage has been properly accessed.

Here's what to do should your power fail:

Bookmark Northern Powergrid's online power cut map and reporting service on mobile devices - www.northernpowergrid.com/power-cuts.

Have a charged mobile phone with important numbers, including 105, easily accessible.

Turn off electrical appliances at the socket (this is particularly important for heating or cooking appliances as your power could be restored at any time and potentially cause a safety hazard).

Keep one light switched on so you know when power is restored.

Keep a battery or wind-up torch handy - as they're much safer than candles.

Check on your elderly or sick neighbours and relatives

Ensure you have warm clothing and blankets handy and some food and drink in your home that does not require electricity.

Only call 999 in an emergency.

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