Met Office names Storm Lilian with wind warning for 23 August

The Met Office named Storm Lilian on 22 August 2024 and issued a weather warning for strong winds throughout Friday 23 August, from 5am to 11am, Northern Powergrid said¹. The network operator said the warning may affect both of its licence areas, in the North East and Yorkshire¹.

Northern Powergrid said the weather front had the potential to affect the electricity network, and that "there is a possibility that there could be disruption to power supplies"¹. It said its teams were on stand-by to be deployed to any affected areas and were prepared to help restore power as quickly as possible¹. The company said it was proactively contacting vulnerable customers registered for its free Priority Services Membership, and engaging with stakeholders, local councils and Local Resilience Forums¹. Customer support vehicles and welfare partners were also prepared to go out into local communities where possible¹.

The company gave the following contact routes for reporting a power cut and for priority services¹:

Northern Powergrid said reporting a cut online or on 105 helps it locate where the faults are on the network¹. It asked anyone who spots fallen trees on its power lines or poles, or damaged cables, to stay well clear and call 105 immediately, and said 999 should only be called in the event of an emergency¹.

Why it matters for households

The warning covers Friday morning, 5am to 11am, in Northern Powergrid's North East and Yorkshire licence areas, where the operator says supply disruption is possible¹. Households already registered for Priority Services will be contacted with an estimate of when power is likely to be back on, and to find out whether they need additional support¹. Northern Powergrid's power cut advice, as published, includes keeping a charged mobile phone with important numbers including 105, and charged power banks; turning off electrical appliances at the socket, particularly heating or cooking appliances, because power could be restored at any time and potentially cause a safety hazard; keeping one light switched on so you know when power is restored; keeping a battery or wind-up torch handy rather than candles; checking on elderly or sick neighbours and relatives; and keeping warm clothing, blankets and food and drink that does not need electricity to prepare¹. The Met Office's warning levels and what they mean are set out in its weather warnings guide, and households can read how warnings are issued and how to receive them in Met Office alerts. Advice for driving in high winds is covered in driving safely in strong winds, and background on how storms are named is in named storms. General household storm preparation is covered in the storms and snow hub.

What happens next

The wind warning runs until 11am on Friday 23 August¹. Northern Powergrid said it would continue to keep customers updated via its website, social media channels and text message¹. No further warning details, such as the warning level or the full list of areas covered, have been reported in the information published by Northern Powergrid¹.