Storm Francis wreaks havoc in UK

Storm Francis swept through the United Kingdom with strong winds and heavy rain damaging property and infrastructure late on Tuesday, while some residents were forced to evacuate their homes.

Trees and power lines were brought down and rail and road lines blocked, as the unusual summer weather wreaked havoc, with Wales and Northern Ireland suffering the worst.

The Environment Agency had 36 flood alerts and five flood warnings in place for England due to the grim conditions, while Wales had 17 and Scotland 11, according to ITV News.

Wales Online reported that police were involved in two separate water searches for people spotted in the River Taff near Cardiff, and fire crews had to rescue holidaymakers from a flooded campsite in the town of St Clears, Carmarthenshire, after river levels rose from the sea.

The BBC reported that in the county of Gwynedd, about 40 people were evacuated because of flooding, and that the River Ogwen burst its banks in some places, requiring evacuation of properties in the area coordinated by police, mountain rescue teams and the North Wales Fire and Rescue Service.

Power cuts

Thousands of homes in Wales were affected by power cuts according to the BBC, though service was restored by Wednesday morning.

The Daily Mirror reported that elderly residents had to be rescued from the County Down coastal resort town of Newcastle, in Northern Ireland, after a river burst its banks.

The newspaper reported that in Draperstown, County Londonderry, rescuers had to help nine people from inside a house.

"Working in challenging conditions, firefighters, with the support of other agencies, rescued 37 people from floodwater," a statement from the local fire service said. Up to 300 homes were affected and streets left under as much as 1.2 meters of water, a representative told local media.

Parts of the UK were reported to have witnessed record breaking wind speeds of 130 kilometers per hour that were just short of the August record for the UK of 140 kph, recorded in 1996, according to ITV.

The Guardian quoted Met Office chief meteorologist Steve Ramsdale, who said: "Wind speeds this strong are unusual during August and may come as a surprise to people spending time outdoors trying to catch the last few days of summer."

The Met Office ended its yellow warnings for wind and rain on Wednesday morning.