UK clean-up after Storms Austen and Boelo leaves two dead

Clean-up work was under way across parts of the UK on Monday 26 October 2026, after Storms Austen and Boelo brought strong winds, flooding and power cuts over the weekend. Two people died after falling trees struck them.

A 60-year-old man was hit by a falling tree in Dumfries and Galloway, in south-west Scotland. The Guardian named him as Richard Baines, curator of Logan Botanic Garden near Port Logan. A man in his 20s died in Finchley, north London. Both deaths occurred on Sunday 25 October.

Power cuts affected large numbers of homes and businesses. The Energy Networks Association, an industry body, said 90,000 customers were still without power on Monday morning, a figure later reduced to 39,000. Lawrence Slade, its chief executive, said energy network operators had restored power to about 700,000 customers over the weekend.

The storms brought winds widely between 50 and 70mph, according to the same report, with gusts reaching up to 85mph in northern Scotland. Storm Boelo caused severe flooding in the centre of Largs, on Scotland's Ayrshire coast, and the storms also led to travel disruption and event cancellations.

The storms were named by the Met Office, the UK's national weather service. Storm Austen received its name on Tuesday 20 October, while a yellow wind warning was in force. Storm Boelo was named as strong winds were forecast for the north of the country, and the Met Office later issued an amber warning for Boelo as Austen moved through.

The Met Office uses a colour-coded system. Amber, it says, means the likelihood of severe weather impacts has increased, with possible travel delays, road and rail closures, power cuts and a potential risk to life and property. Red is reserved for dangerous weather with a very likely risk to life, while yellow warnings can cover a range of different situations.

More weather is expected. A yellow warning issued on 26 October runs from 6pm that day until 3am on 27 October and covers western coastal areas from Cornwall to south-west Scotland, with gusts of up to 65mph and heavy rain. A second yellow warning runs from 3am to 9pm on 27 October for most of Scotland. It forecasts widespread winds of 50 to 60mph, with gusts of up to 70mph in the far north, and warns of possible travel cancellations, road closures and further power cuts.