STRONG winds from Storm Franklin – the third significant storm to hit the UK in less than a week – made their presence felt in Wrexham yesterday.

With gusts of 50-55mph in North Wales, this latest storm finally abated in the afternoon.

The rest of the week is forecast to be blustery with gusts every day, but less severe.

What Wrexham council said:

  • Up to now, the council has had reports of five or six trees falling across the county borough. Our Environment teams are in attendance.
  • We’re also aware that the winds have caused some damage to buildings (e.g. to property in Miners Road in Llay, and Abbot Street in Wrexham town centre).
  • There is some localised flooding, including some patches near Bangor-on-Dee with the A525/Straight Mile closed, and in Rosemary Lane in Rossett. The River Dee is being monitored.
  • We understand no heavy rain is forecast today, but some is forecast for tomorrow.
  • We anticipate that waste collections scheduled for today will be carried out, so if your bins and recycling containers are due to be emptied, please put them out as normal.

Councillor David A Bithell, Lead Member for Environment and Transport, says: “We’re monitoring the situation closely and our response teams are in place and helping to deal with issues in the county borough.

“We’re advising people to take care, and in particular want to remind people to avoid walking in parks and open spaces where there are large trees close by.”

Drivers were asked not to ignore any road closure signs they see.

It’s important to follow diversions and not drive through road closures, as they’re there to keep people safe.

You can report any issues (e.g. storm damage, fallen trees etc) to the council on the following numbers:

  • Office hours (8.30am-5pm) 01978 298989
  • Out of hours 01978 292055
  • Housing repairs for council tenants (24hrs) 01978 298993

Any issues with power-outages can be reported by calling 105 (Powercut 105 is a free service that will put you through to your local network operator for help and support).

Remember that if there’s an immediate threat to life during any adverse weather event, you should always call 999

Rail passengers were urged to check before they travel as high winds and fallen trees cause disruption on the network.

Transport for Wales said: "We urge customers to check before they travel today (Monday 21 February) due to the deteriorating weather conditions and forecasted stronger winds!

Please check before you travel on www.journeycheck.com/tfwrail

With several roads closed in North Wales, there was disruption and delays to bus services.

Arriva Wales said: For the latest travel news, please use the "Plan a Journey" section on our website and/or app. We are experiencing service disruption across some parts of our network due to national staff shortages, and we appreciate your patience at this time: http://arrivabus.co.uk"