Bradford Council working round the clock to support residents affected by Storm Arwen

Winter weather and power cut update

Power cuts continue across the district

Our teams have been working round the clock over the weekend to support people affected by the power cuts caused by Storm Arwen with over 1,500 properties in our district affected.

The majority of the properties affected have been without electricity since early on Saturday morning. Northern Powergrid are hopeful that they can restore power to affected properties by midnight tonight

Respite centres & support

We are continuing to work with local residents, volunteers and councillors to support people affected. Respite centres have been opened in local communities providing residents with warmth, hot drinks, food, blankets and somewhere to charge up mobile phones.

Over the weekend respite centres were opened at St Barnabas Church in Thwaites Brow, Silsden Methodist Church, Silsden Town Hall, Denholme Youth Centre and St Mary’s Church Hall in Riddlesden. The centres at St Mary’s Church Hall and at Denholme Youth Centre have been open today and a respite centre at Queensbury Community Programme was open this morning.

Local councillors and Bradford Council Neighbourhood Wardens have been going door to door to check on residents.

Gritting continues

Our gritting teams have been out continually since Friday evening in often blizzard conditions, clearing snow and ice from the district's routes.

Some of the crews have been deployed specifically to help in communities affected by the power cuts to get to the respite centres supported by the council’s Emergency Management Team.

Vaccination sites have also been made a priority to ensure COVID-19 vaccinations could continue.

Our website has information about gritting including a map of all gritting routes throughout the district.

Homeless Cold Weather Provision

Our Cold Weather Provision for homeless people has been open this weekend with outreach and support workers out helping people who sleep rough by providing emergency beds.

Anyone worried about anyone sleeping out on the streets in the district is asked to call 01274 309165, visit http://www.streetlink.org.uk or download the Street Link app. Everyone who stays for a ‘cold weather’ bed is provided with support to help resolve their housing situation on a longer term basis.

Fallen trees & road closures for lights switch on events

We also dealt with 33 reports of fallen trees blocking roads and foot paths and our teams have worked with local contractors to get the damage cleared and roads reopened.

Road closures that were planned for Christmas light switch on events in Ilkley, Queensbury and Eccleshill had to be cancelled, with the lights switch on event in Ilkley being cancelled entirely due to the conditions.

We’ve had an extremely busy weekend with officers, volunteers, residents and councillors all working hard to support residents some who have been without power for over 48 hours.

We will continue to monitor the situation and open respite centres where needed. Thank you to all those who have been supporting residents.

More information

Northern Powergrid are working to get power restored to properties as quickly as they can but unfortunately there are still lots of properties who will face another cold night.

Northern Powergrid’s website has information for residents about the power cuts with estimated times for reconnection.