Storm Bert impacts SP Manweb licence area

Storm Bert began affecting the SP Manweb (SPM) licence area at about 8am on Saturday 22 November 2024, according to a written submission from SP Energy Networks (SPEN) to the Senedd's Climate Change, Environment and Infrastructure Committee. SPEN owns and operates the electricity distribution networks in Merseyside and North Wales, which it says serve one and a half million customers¹.

The most intense gusts came between 9am and 12 noon, with the highest recorded gust of 83mph at Capel Curig at 9am. Winds picked up again overnight from Saturday into Sunday, particularly between 10pm and 1am, when the maximum gust was measured at 76mph¹.

Flood warnings were in place throughout the licence area, and a Major Incident was called in Northwich, Mid Cheshire, because Phase 1 and 2 flood defences were being deployed. SPEN staff attended and confirmed there were no risks to SPEN assets. No safety issues were escalated to the SPM Tactical Emergency Action Centre and there were no breaches of the Guaranteed Standard of Performance (GS2, 12 hour) during the storm. The longest period off supply was 716 minutes, or 11 hours 56 minutes¹.

SPEN's account states that Storm Bert did not result in any major impact for SPM, and that the company did not exceed its normal "business as usual" position during the event¹.

The submission sets Storm Bert alongside Storm Darragh, which began on 6 December with windspeeds peaking at 93mph. Across the SPM area, 181,059 customers were affected, most of them in Wales, with Mid Wales, North Wales and Dee Valley the worst hit. SPEN reports that 89% were restored within 24 hours and 95% within 48 hours, and that falling trees and branches caused 85% to 90% of the damage, predominantly softwood trees and forestry plantations¹.

Why it matters for households

For households in Merseyside and North Wales, SPEN's account indicates that Storm Bert caused local interruptions rather than widespread loss of supply, with the longest single outage lasting just under 12 hours. The more serious event for the same area was Storm Darragh two weeks later, when 181,059 customers lost power and restoration work was slowed by flooded highways, fallen trees and submerged network equipment¹.

SPEN describes its Priority Services Register for customers who are over 60, have a special communication need, depend on electricity for home or medical care, have a child under five, have a chronic illness, or feel they need a little extra help. Customers can also join for a short period, for example while recovering from an operation, during pregnancy or after a bereavement. SPEN says it has reached 96% of eligible customers against census data, with 1.3 million households on its register across the group, and that it carries out an annual leaflet drop to promote the register, the last in September 2024¹. It says customers on the register are prioritised in call queues, and that it made outbound calls to medically dependent customers to check on their welfare during Darragh¹.

On compensation, SPEN states that it pays proactively, so customers do not need to claim or contact the company to receive payments they are eligible for. For Darragh, 9,500 customers were eligible and 8,000 had been paid at the time of the submission, with the remaining 1,500 being unmanned sites or requiring further information¹.

What happens next

SPEN began processing compensation payments for Storm Darragh customers on Friday 13 December¹. The submission does not set out any further dated steps for Storm Bert. Its section on areas for improvement following Darragh notes that field communication was challenging where 4G coverage was limited¹.

For general household preparation for high winds and snow, see the guide to storms and snow, and for the December event in the same area, Storm Darragh 2024: impacts and lessons for households.