WILMSLOW was brought to a standstill as gale force winds ravaged the town and surrounding areas, with falling trees blocking roads and bringing down power cables.

A 40-year old escaped injury when a tree fell on her car as she drove along the A34 in Nether Alderley at 2.10pm.

Fire crews were called out to Curzon Mews in Wilmslow at 13.19 as large sections of the roof blew onto the road and residents cars. Residents were instructed to remain inside. As wind speeds reached 70mph, the Fire Brigade were unable to use their cherry picker to secure the remaining sections of the roof and the police were called to cordon off the area.

Cheshire Police computers crashed under the weight of phone calls received. The constabulary normally gets around 50 emergency calls in an afternoon but received more than 500 999 calls. The police asked people to avoid calling unless it was a genuine emergency.

Fallen trees brought chaos to the roads around Wilmslow, blocking Brook Lane and Macclesfield Road in Alderley Edge. Part of the A34 near Astra Zeneca was closed after a tree fell, blocking access and London Road, close to the Kings Arms roundabout in Wilmslow, was closed after a tree fell on a car and blocked the road.

Part of Water Lane near the town centre was also cordoned off after roof tiles came off the roof of a building.

Sheep escaped from Mere Farm in Nether Alderley after a fallen tree crashed onto the gate. The farmer had to retrieve his flock after they wandered onto Chelford Road.

Motorists blocked the nearby M56 as they drove onto the hard shoulders to try and avoid traffic congestion. Emergency services asked for these stretches of road to be left clear to ensure they had access to the motorway.

Train services ground to a halt as Wilmslow train station lost power in the storm. Network Rail reported local train services were cancelled due to debris on the line and high winds. Virgin also cancelled all services on the West Coast main line, which runs through Wilmslow.

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