Power restored to homes after Lancaster floods – and other updates and useful links

#lancasterfloods view from Carlisle bridge earlier thanks to @TheBayOfficial for excellent coverage today pic.twitter.com/kqmXZKcI1I

— Banks Lyon Jewellers (@bankslyon) December 6, 2015

Engineers from Electricity North West have restored power to 45,000 homes in Lancaster, Morecambe and the surrounding area and are continuing efforts to restore the remaining 10,000 later this morning.

Floodwater breached flood defences at Lancaster’s main substation just before 11.00pm on Saturday, cutting power to 55,000 properties.

Engineers have been working in the substation since 111.00am on Sunday when it was safe to enter and start repairing damage caused by the water.

Steve Cox, Electricity North West Incident Manager, said: “While we still have a significant amount of work to do to fully repair the substation, our teams have worked round the clock and done enough to restore power to a large number of customers earlier than expected.

“Rather than wait any longer for the full repair and restoration of the site, we have chosen to provide power at the earliest opportunity.

“I’d like to thank customers for their understanding and their goodwill to our teams during what continues to be an enormously challenging time for everyone involved. We are immensely proud of the area and the people we serve in the way they have dealt with this incident.”

One fella was cooking scrambled eggs on a camping stove outside his home in Lancaster; long queues for pay phones pic.twitter.com/LEi4UEsQCv

— Helen Pidd (@helenpidd) December 6, 2015

Engineers will remain on site at the substation to continue additional repair and restoration work to equipment affected by the floodwater until all supplies are restored.

2,657 properties remain without power in Cumbria, where floodwater is restricting access for Electricity North West teams.

Steve added: “We will continue to work with the emergency services and our other partners in Cumbria to gain access to our sites and restore power to those still waiting to be connected as soon as the waters have receeded.”

Flood defences at Kendal and Carlisle substations have held, protecting supplies to 110,000 homes.

Electricity North West is posting regular updates on its social media channels and has drafted in extra support to its contact centre to handle customer calls.

• Regular updates will be posted on Twitter @ElectricityNW. For emergencies, please call us on 0800 195 4141

Other News

(Please note the situation is fluid and may change depending on engineering work etc. The Virtual-Lancaster team has been as affected by the floods as all Lancaster residents (this report is being posted from Malta by team member John Freeman!).

Please check our Facebook Page for more updates and we’ll also try and update our Twitter page @virt_lancaster

• Halton residents: Electricity suppliers are hoping to restore power at some point on Tuesday.

• It’s anticipated that both Greyhound Bridge and Skerton Bridge will be closed until at least 3.00pm on Monday 7 December for bridge inspections.

• Both the Millennium Bridge and Carlisle Bridge are now open to pedestrians

• Several Lancaster schools are closed, please see this page on the Lancashire County Council web site for more information

Queues outside one of v few shops open in electricity-free Lancaster today: an offy, selling fags & warm booze pic.twitter.com/JFFLNt4d0T

— Helen Pidd (@helenpidd) December 6, 2015

• Many shops and businesses have been affected by the flooding.

• If you were due to have an elective operation at RLI of WGH today, call 01524 516095 to see if it is still going ahead.

• The recent flooding and loss of power in the district is having a major impact on all council services. More information here on the City Council web site

• Local bus services remain disrupted. For Stagecoach updates check this page on their web site – you’ll need to enter your postcode: https://www.stagecoachbus.com/service-updates

• Virgin Trains hope to restore train services from today, but work is still being carried out. For the latest information check their Twitter @VirginTrains

• The Northern Rail Lancaster to Morecambe timetable is here. Check the current status of services here and check their Twitter account for updates: @northernrailorg. Customer relations: 0333 222 0125

• Lancaster University has postponed exams, tests and deadlines this week – students should await communication from departments later in the week. For more information visit their Twitter @LancasterUni | The Bay has a news report here