Engineers are on standby across the North West as Storm Gerrit hits the region.

Electricity North West is preparing as the storm arrives in the area today, Wednesday, and overnight with strong winds likely to cause power cuts.

Engineers will be on standby and emergency response plans have been stood up so teams can be ready to respond if the network is damaged.

Met Office forecasters have issued a yellow weather warning and are predicting winds of up to 65mph in some areas while heavy rain has also been forecasted.

Some areas will experience gusts throughout the day, but peak gusts are expected from 6pm and overnight.

Storm Gerrit is the fourth major weather incident Electricity North West has responded to this month and incident manager, Mark Mercer, said: “We’ve been monitoring the forecast daily and adapted our preparations to ensure we’re ready for when the bad weather hits.

“We cut trees all year to clear them from power lines, but strong winds can still cause damage and blow other debris into the network which can cause power cuts.

“The key thing during a storm is to keep everybody safe. If you see any damaged equipment, then stay well clear as it could still be live. Call us on 105 and we will send engineers to make it safe, or if there’s a life-threatening situation call 999.”

People can prepare ahead of possible power cuts by charging phones and laptops as well as getting blankets and torches ready.

For more tips and for live power cut information go to www.enwl.co.uk/powercuts.

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