Several trains were cancelled and Hove railway station was closed as high winds lifted the roof of the footbridge over the tracks this afternoon (Monday 15 September).
East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service were called to the scene during the evening rush hour and taped off the entrances.
Across the road, the wind sheared one of the area’s tallest elm trees almost in half, blocking most of the road in Station Approach, on the north side of the flats at Cliftonville Court.
Specialist contractors were called out and were on the scene yards away when the Hove station footbridge was closed.
Wind speeds are expected to drop from about breakfast time onwards in the morning but are forecast to pick up again on Wednesday, with gusts of about 35mph expected.
By Thursday night, the winds should have dropped and the weather should be much calmer and on Friday the daytime maximum temperature could even top 20C (68F).
The train operator Southern said; “High winds are causing disruption to services across the network. As a result, trains may be cancelled, delayed by up to 60 minutes or revised. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.”
UPDATE: Southern said: “Services can now call at Hove station as normal, with the first to stop at Hove being the 10.15pm London Victoria to Bognor Regis and the 9.50pm Southampton Central to Brighton.
“Damage to the station canopy at Seaford means that services will terminate and restart at Newhaven Harbour instead.
“This is expected to last until the end of the day. Please change at Newhaven Town for local bus connections to/from Seaford.
“Please note canopy damage at Seaford is likely to affect services tomorrow as contractors will need more time to complete safety inspections.”
Earlier the Palace Pier, in Brighton, also closed for safety reasons at the height of the storm.
