By Alistair Grant,Claudia Trotman

Copyright dailystar

Britain’s strongest October tempest for 170 years brought mayhem yesterday as Storm Amy’s hurricane-force 109mph gales shut shops, roads and rail lines.

Tens of thousands saw blackouts as the storm downed power cables, toppled trees, blocked roads and disrupted trains, flights and ferry services. Amy’s central air pressure, a mark of its strength, fell to 946 millibars, the lowest and most intense seen in October since records began in the 1850s. One man passed away, with Irish police confirming the man died in a “weather-related” incident in the Letterkenny area of County Donegal, Ireland, shortly after 4.15pm on Friday.

Experts believe it was a rare “sting jet cyclone” –like southern England’s deadly Great Storm of 1987.

The whole nation was buffeted yesterday as Scotland bore the worst impacts, but there were gusts over 70mph in Wales and 65mph in England.

Red shipping warnings were issued for mega 30ft waves off north-west coasts, while a rare landslide alert was put out by the British Geological Survey as deluges left hillsides sodden.

Further travel disruption is likely to follow after flights, train and ferry services were cancelled.

Comic Jason Manford told how his flight from London to Belfast had to abort its landing and turn back because conditions were too extreme.

He added that four people were so scared they got off before take-off. He wrote: “I’ve seen too much Final Destination to not take this seriously!”

Today blustery downpours are due as the clean-up begins.

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