Storm response raised at meeting
THE response to Storm Arwen in Northumberland has been raised by families who were left in the dark in the days after the storm.
Some rural residents of the county were left without electricity for weeks following the storm in November.
Representatives from a range of bodies including Northern Powergrid, Northumbrian Water and Northumberland County Council attended meetings at Darras Hall Primary School and Bellingham Town Hall.
Forestry England and the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) also attended the meeting in Bellingham to answer questions from Hexham MP Guy Opperman and constituents.
Two further meetings are planned for later in January, with the evidence from the events used to form a report that will be sent to Ofgem to be considered as part of their review of the response to Storm Arwen.
Paul Glendinning, Northern Powergrid’s director of policy and markets, admitted lessons needed to be learnt after the company’s actions were heavily criticised following the damage caused by high winds that left thousands of households without power.
He said: “We welcome the opportunity to speak to our customers, obtain their feedback and answer questions about Storm Arwen, our response and compensation. The storm was one of the most extreme events we have seen in 20 years, and of course, they are lessons to be learnt about how we can help prevent power cuts and assist our customers in managing the impact if they happen – especially those in more remote communities.”
The sentiment was echoed by Jim Howey, head of Water Networks North.
Mr Howey added: “It’s vital to learn lessons from Storm Arwen and make sure we build future resilience in our region, and we’re very pleased to play our part in this process alongside local communities.”
Hexham MP Guy Opperman praised residents for their “excellent” contributions at the meetings and said their recommendations would help improve community resilience ahead of future storm events.
He said: “I am grateful for the excellent contributions from attendees at the meetings in Ponteland and Bellingham. Both meetings proved to be successful events. I look forward to using evidence from the meetings in a report, which I will be sending to Ofgem, to be considered for their review.”
The next meetings are at Hexham Mart, January 27, 6pm-8pm and Allendale Town Hall, January 28, 7pm-9pm.