A major incident was declared on Thursday lunchtime as emergency services recognised the impact the storm would have across the island, and could call on the military or mutual aid if urgent.
Deputy chief officer of police, Richard Bell chaired the strategic coordinating group, bringing the emergency services together to agree on a single plan.
‘It was said to me that it was anticipated to be the worst storm in 100 years and was significantly more concerning than 1987, which is why we took planning so seriously,’ he said.
‘Our concerns were the high winds reported to reach 100mph, but also because they coincided with our high tide, so we were concerned about some flooding on the coastal areas as well as the debris that may bring and damage to our port infrastructure.
‘But our biggest worry was the risk to life, because we can repair property and we can make good the environment, but we can’t address people if they are seriously injured or killed as a result of this.’
Up to 3pm yesterday there had been no traffic accidents reported during the day, but police did have to deal with one in the Rohais de Haut at 10.20 on Thursday evening.
They arrested a 30-year-old man for drink-driving who then blew three times the legal alcohol limit when in custody.
A separate call centre was set up in addition to JESCC to dispatch resources.
450 calls were taken between 6pm and midnight. 146 of those were emergencies called in through 999, five times more than an average Thursday evening, handled by just six operators.
During the early hours it did overwhelm call-handling capability and operators focused on the 999 system.
‘We’re really pleased the public followed our guidance and advice to stay inside and minimise the risk to themselves and minimise the risk to our staff,’ said Mr Bell.
‘At this point in time, I’m not aware of any deaths related to the storm, but we have a number of minor injuries, including one from Mon Plaisir where a window went through and caused some glass cuts to a person’s face.
‘Health reported there were eight injuries which came in overnight, but not all of those can be put down to being directly related to the storm.’
150 trees were reported down, and at one point yesterday morning, all access routes to the hospital were affected by trees down.
‘Minor damage has been sustained by schools and some other government buildings,’ said Mr Bell.
‘In relation to utilities, they have been fairly resilient, there was some relatively minor disruption to broadband or phone networks, gas and electricity is fairly stable.
‘The islands are showing immense resilience, and there’s been a real community spirit about how we’re going to bounce back from this.’
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