Britain’s St. Jude Storm Kills Three, Shuts Down Power

A massive storm battered Britain and the Netherlands on Monday, killing three people and cutting power to thousands of people. The so-called St. Jude storm forced hundreds of plane and train cancellations as it moved across Europe.

Southern England and Wales were hits with winds up to 99 miles per hour, making the storm the worst recorded in Britain in a decade, reports Reuters.

One victim, a 17-year-old girl, died when a tree fell on her home while she was sleeping. A man in his 50s died when a tree crushed his far in Watford, just north of London.

Britain wasn’t the only country battered by the massive storm either. Heavy winds were felt across the Netherlands, where the storm uprooted trees and shut down all train traffic to Amsterdam. A woman was killed by falling trees in the Dutch capital and a ferry carrying 1,000 people from Newcastle was kept from docking in IJmuiden.

Fallen trees blocked railways and took out power to about 220,000 homes, notes CNN. While three deaths were confirmed, media reports stated that at least one more person is believed missing. Rescuers searched for a missing teenager thought to be swept out to sea. However, they were forced to suspend the search when the storm became too strong.

While wind was a huge part of the storm, authorities also warned about heavy rain. Eighteen flood warnings were issued in the southwest of Britain, where Sussex Police reported more than 125 trees down across the county. Network Rail, which manages Britain’s rail infrastructure, also reported more than 100 trees down on railways in the network.

While the storm was the strongest for Britain in 10 years, it came with advance warning, allowing the government and local officials to prepare for it. The worst of the St. Jude storm passed by late morning, though strong winds still battered the coast.

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