STORM Eunice has been declared a major incident by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Local Resilience Forum due to the potential for severe disruption.

The Met Office has issued warnings about extremely strong winds with the potential for severe disruption from the early hours of Friday, February 18.

The news to declare the storm in Hampshire as a major incident comes as many schools and colleges have decided to close, including Queen Mary's College in Basingstoke. 

Read more: Full list of schools closed in Hampshire

For Hampshire and Isle of Wight, gusts of up to 80 miles per hour have been forecast, with even higher wind speed possible on the coast.

The Environment Agency has issued a number of flood alerts in coastal areas.

 

Hampshire Constabulary has issued a statement on behalf of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Local Resilience Forum (LRF) advising people to avoid exposed costal areas, take warning of signs and be aware of the tides as high winds are predicted to hit the county. 

The LRF is a partnership which works together to help people in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight stay safe, made up of emergency services, councils, businesses and voluntary organisations. 

It aims to reduce risk in the community and help people be prepared for emergencies.  

 

The statement from Hampshire police on behalf of the LRF said: "There’s expected disruption to the road and transport network, so members of the public are advised not to travel if possible, and to keep up to date with the latest bulletins from travel operators.

"If you do need to travel, please allow plenty of extra time for your journey and drive to the conditions.

"Emergency services, local authorities, National Highways and other voluntary and statutory agencies are on stand-by to put well-rehearsed plans into place.

Read more: Hampshire highways teams on 'full alert' braced for Storm Eunice

"You can report trees fallen into a major road to National Highways and on local roads to your local authority.

"Please only call 999 if there is an immediate risk to life.

"To report a power cut, you can call the 105 number, which will take you to your local electricity network operator."

You can sign up for free flood warnings and can keep up to date with the latest situation at https://www.gov.uk/check-flood-risk, call Floodline on 0345 988 1188 or follow @EnvAgency on Twitter for the latest flood updates.

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