This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/wales/6277727.stm

The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Battle to restore power continues Battle to restore power continues
(30 minutes later)
Some homes in mid and north Wales are still without power following storms and gale force winds which battered the country on Thursday. Around 15,000 homes in mid and north Wales are still without power following storms and gale force winds which have battered the country .
Scottish Power electricity engineers have been working overnight to restore supplies to 30,000 homes hit. Scottish Power electricity engineers have been working overnight to restore supplies.
The company said a smaller number of customers were still without power and they were assessing the situation. They have halved the number of customers cut off and more staff are being drafted in.
On Thursday a driver died just after leaving Wales on the A55 near Chester when a lorry was blown onto a car.On Thursday a driver died just after leaving Wales on the A55 near Chester when a lorry was blown onto a car.
Scottish Power said extra staff from Scotland and Northern Ireland had been brought to Wales to cope with the emergency, the second in a week.Scottish Power said extra staff from Scotland and Northern Ireland had been brought to Wales to cope with the emergency, the second in a week.
Widespread disruption Company spokesman Guy Jefferson said in all 300 engineers had worked through the night to reconnect supplies and a further 60 staff would arrive later.
It is reported that some isolated villages are still completely without power. Stand up
Two schools - Whitton Primary near Knighton and Berriew Primary in Powys - are closed on Friday. He said the electricity network had been extensively damaged and the worst hit areas are Ceredigion, Northern Powys, Gwynedd and the Conwy Valley.
Mr Jefferson said staff were being hampered by roads blocked by trees and fallen power lines and the atrocious weather conditions, and he pleaded for customers still cut off to be patient.
"In some places people could hardly stand up, let alone carry out repairs," he said.
"It's not only that but we have had problems accessing some of our sites because of the road problems. Please be patient with us."
Two schools in Powys - Whitton Primary near Knighton and Berriew Primary - are closed on Friday, as are two in Flintshire - Ysgol y Fron Junior in Holywell and Lixwm Primary.
A house in Bedford Street, Roath, Cardiff is damaged by a fallen tree
On Thursday gale force winds reaching 80mph in some places caused widespread disruption. Most flights from Cardiff International Airport and rail services in and out of Wales were disrupted.On Thursday gale force winds reaching 80mph in some places caused widespread disruption. Most flights from Cardiff International Airport and rail services in and out of Wales were disrupted.
By Friday morning the number of flood warnings in place across the country had fallen to five. By Friday morning the number of flood warnings in place across the country had fallen to five with the major problems on the Dee, Severn and Wye along the English border.
Transport services were returning to normal although Irish Ferries said their services from Holyhead were cancelled because of the bad weatherTransport services were returning to normal although Irish Ferries said their services from Holyhead were cancelled because of the bad weather
Scottish Power said the area hit by power cuts appears to stretch from mid Wales to the north-east. Half the village of Llanuwchllyn near Bala was left without electricity. In north Wales, northbound trains between Shotton and Bidston are being replaced by due to a fuse box being blown over in the high winds.
First Great Western rail services between London Paddington and Cardiff were cancelled and further disruption was expected. Roofs blown off
Most flights out of Cardiff Airport were cancelled, delayed or diverted to other airports after 70mph gusts were recorded and the Port Road access route was closed after a garage roof blew on to the carriageway. On Arriva Trains route between Llandudno Junction and Blaenau Ffestiniog, the line is closed due to flooding
A house in Bedford Street, Roath, Cardiff is damaged by a fallen tree On Thursday a large number of trains between London Paddington and Cardiff were cancelled and flights out of Cardiff International Airport were cancelled, delayed or diverted.
The roofs were blown off five houses on the Trehafren estate at Newtown in Powys. All five families have been moved out. Elsewhere, at least three schools were closed. The roofs were blown off five houses on the Trehafren estate at Newtown in Powys. All five families have been moved out.
In Prestatyn, the magistrates' court number two court had to be evacuated in mid-case after the roof started to lift. In Prestatyn, the magistrates' court number two court had to be evacuated in mid-case after the roof started to lift while lorries overturned on the A55 on Anglesey and on the A5 at Chirk.
Lorries overturned on the A55 on Anglesey and on the A5 at Chirk, with the Freight Transport Association advising its members to delay making deliveries until Friday if possible.
Winds gusting at 85 mph were recorded at Capel Curig in Snowdonia, 76 mph in Mumbles near Swansea, and 63mph at St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan.
Emergency crews were also called to Penallt, Monmouthshire, where a tree fell onto power cables.
Tree falls elsewhere included one which hit the bonnet of a car outside Flint Retail Park, leaving the male driver and female passenger shocked but otherwise unhurt.
BBC meteorologist Derek Brockway warned that the weather looked like turning colder over the weekend.BBC meteorologist Derek Brockway warned that the weather looked like turning colder over the weekend.
Do you have a dramatic story to tell, or a picture illustrating the storms? Send your news and pictures to:
newsonline.wales@bbc.co.uk
Please do not endanger yourself or others, take any unnecessary risks or infringe any laws.
Click here to read the terms and conditions