Thousands without power across South East after Storm Boelo

Thousands of properties across the south east of England have experienced power cuts following Storm Boelo.

The UK’s second named storm of the season, coming just one day after Storm Austen, brought heavy rain and powerful winds which uprooted trees, blocking roads and damaging power cables.

Among those affected by power supply issues were 550 properties in Battle and 480 in Heathfield, both in East Sussex, plus 450 in Hamstreet, Kent, according to the UK Power Networks (UKPN) website.

In a statement earlier, UKPN said there were “a number of localised power cuts affecting customers across parts of Surrey, Kent and Sussex” and its teams were working to restore supplies.

Alan White, a councillor at Sevenoaks District Council, said a fallen tree in Station Road had caused power supply issues in the South Darenth area of Kent.

He said power was expected to be restored by about 21:00 GMT to 22:00.