Storm Boelo shuts mountain roads and cancels morning flights as gales persist

Severe gales from Storm Boelo kept several of the island’s upland roads closed on Sunday morning, cut power to homes around Foxdale and grounded morning flights. Forecasters expect the winds to ease only slowly through the day.

The storm took hold on Saturday evening. Energy FM (manx.news) reported that a fallen tree forced the closure of a section of the A1 between Glen Vine and Crosby, after another tree had come down on the Old Castletown Road earlier that evening.

An amber warning for gale to severe gale force winds, with gusts of up to 70mph, runs from 18:00 on Saturday until 15:00 on Sunday, according to Manx Radio. Energy FM said gusts could potentially reach 80mph in places.

Sunday forecast

Manx Radio said early showers would become isolated, leaving a mostly bright day with sunny intervals. Westerly gales to severe gales are expected through the morning and early afternoon, with gusts of 55mph to 65mph, bringing some further minor damage and more travel disruption.

The winds are not expected to fall below gale force until late afternoon and evening, and should moderate further overnight. Energy FM gave a maximum temperature of 12°C, with sunrise at 07:04 and sunset at 16:59.

A band of rain is due on Monday morning and should clear through the afternoon. That will leave a dry spell before more rain arrives overnight, according to Energy FM.

Coastal warnings

A second amber warning covers coastal overtopping. Manx Radio said significant overtopping of seawater and debris was expected onto the car park and road at Fenella Beach and onto the promenade in Peel for a couple of hours around high tide at 10:30.

Energy FM reported that Castletown Promenade and the Castletown end of Shore Road in Rushen were also at particular risk. It said there was a risk of inner harbour flooding in Ramsey, the Tongue area of Douglas harbour and the lowest-lying parts of Castletown Harbour.

Travel and roads

Manx Radio reported that all of Sunday morning’s flights were cancelled and most sailings were off. The 19:30 Douglas to Heysham sailing was due to go ahead as planned. Buses were running normally at the time of its update.

According to Manx Radio, the following roads were closed:

• the A18 Mountain Road between Brandywell and Barrule Park, Ramsey
• Tholt y Will, from the Bungalow to the Sulby crossroads
• Beinn y Phott, from Brandywell to the Druidale Road junction

It added that a number of other roads were shut while Department of Infrastructure staff cleared fallen trees. New Castletown Road was open but had branches and debris on it, particularly northbound around Fairy Bridge.

Manx Utilities said customers from Hope Corner to St Marks, including Foxdale and surrounding areas, had lost power and that engineers were working on the supply, Manx Radio reported.

Closures and cancellations

Manx Radio listed a number of closures and cancellations:

• Curraghs Wildlife Park is closed all weekend but will open next week for half-term.
• All civic amenity sites are closed.
• The Douglas Bay Horse Tramway is closed for the weekend.
• Special Olympics Isle of Man bowling has been cancelled.
• Manx Wildlife Trust’s Peel gift shop is shut for the day.
• The 09:30 service at Malew Church has been called off.

On Saturday the government urged islanders to give themselves extra time for journeys and to check that events and businesses are open before setting out, Energy FM reported. It also advised people to follow the Constabulary’s social media channels for road closures and to secure loose items outdoors.