Storm Ciara: Disruption across Wales as clean-up begins

Flooded railway Image copyright Network Rail
Image caption Parts of the Cambrian rail line are now under water

Roads remain closed and train services cancelled as the clean-up gets under way following Storm Ciara.

Winds hit 93mph (150k/ph) on the Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd on Sunday, with the rail network effectively shut all day across Wales.

More than a dozen flood warnings remain in force on Monday - including on the River Elwy in Denbighshire.

Residents at a caravan park nearby in St Asaph had to be evacuated when river levels rose dramatically.

North Wales Police evacuated Spring Gardens Caravan Park and properties in Llys y Felin with residents placed in a "rest centre" set up in the leisure centre.

A £6m flood defence scheme was opened in the city in 2018.

However, a severe flood warning in the area - which means there is possible danger to life - has now been reduced.

Image copyright Stephen Davies Photography
Image caption Sea wolf? Photographer Stephen Davies said this shot was "pure luck" during the storm at Porthcawl, Bridgend

The storm cut power supplies to thousands of homes, with engineers still trying to restore electricity to many.

Western Power Distribution said it had thousands of homes hit by power cuts across south Wales on Sunday - but supplies were restored to all but two properties by Monday morning.

"We restored supply to 86,000 customers yesterday, that was in some extremely challenging conditions - winds in excess of 90mph," said Sean Sullivan, the firm's network supply manager for Wales.

"It was particularly difficult especially for our staff out on the ground repairing things.

"It was 20 or 30 times our normal fault value, so it was a tremendous achievement."

SP Energy Networks said at the height of the storm, 20,000 homes across north Wales were affected, and on Monday its engineers were still working to restore electricity to about 1,900 properties.

Many roads remain closed across Wales following the storm.

The main A470 trunk road in north Wales is shut in and around Llanrwst, in the Conwy Valley, after sustaining widespread flooding on Sunday.

Image caption The Conwy Valley town of Llanrwst felt the full force of Storm Ciara

"It's pretty devastating," said Osian Deiniol, who runs the Blas Ar Fwyd food deli store in the town.

He told BBC Radio Wales' Breakfast show how he was left picking bottles of wine out of water, while trying to save thousands of pounds worth of stock in 11 fridges.

"It's heart breaking. The deli has been on the high street for 32 years and is part of the fabric of the town," he said.

"It was flash floods. But the power of social media, the community rallied around, people were volunteering to come and help - people who were flooded themselves.

"It's devastating, but the community really came to our aid."

Image caption The clean-up is under way in Llanrwst - but many will be counting the cost for months to come

The Conwy Valley rail line remains under water in the area, with a bus replacement service operating between Llandudno Junction and Blaenau Ffestiniog.

Network Rail and Transport for Wales have both urged all rail passengers in Wales to check before they travel, with a number of other lines also affected.

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Media captionStorm Ciara: A round-up from Wales

A rail replacement bus service will operate on the Cambrian Line from Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth and between Machynlleth to Pwllheli.

Service could also face delays or cancellation west of Swansea into Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire.

Road closures:

Image copyright Twitter | NW Police
Image caption The A5 near Llyn Ogwen, Bethesda, was hit by a landslide, as this image from a police monitor shows

(SOURCE: Inrix/Traffic Wales)

However, ferry services bringing fans home from the Six Nations match in Dublin on Saturday are now operating again, as are flights from the Irish Republic.

Cardiff Airport has reported a number of cancellations for flights to Amsterdam, as Storm Ciara arrives in the Netherlands.

A number of schools in north Wales will be closed on Monday after being damaged in the storm.

Image copyright Rose Voon
Image caption Waves crash against the harbour in Aberystwyth

Ysgol Dyffryn Conwy in Llanrwst will be shut following flooding, while Ysgol y Creuddyn in Conwy will be closed due to a "significant risk that more slates will fall", with school leaders saying they will reassess the situation on Monday morning.

Three primary schools in the county are also closed - Eglwysbach, Penmachno and Talhaiarn.

In Merthyr Tydfil, Ysgol Coed Y Dderwen is also closed due to damage to scaffolding which was surrounding the school.

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