Christmas getaway disrupted by storms: live updates Realistically, it may be that we do have some customers without power on Christmas Day and for that we apologise. For all customers who've been without power at any time of year, it's not great, but at this particular time of year it's not what people want. She added: "We have engineers out working in some very challenging conditions. We currently have around 70,000 customers without power across our area, which covers central southern England. We restored power to around 20,000 homes yesterday and we've restored power to a further 20,000 this morning. There's a number of challenges, which differ from area to area. In some areas access is very bad - there's a lot of surface water and a lot of flood water on the roads, so actually getting about can be pretty dangerous and treacherous. There are a lot of trees that have come down and brought power lines with them and that's really what's caused a lot of the issues over the course of yesterday and into today. 14.28 France is also being affected by the storm. A 12-year-old boy was crushed to death beneath building materials at a construction site in Saint Germain de Tallevand. Strong winds are also delaying delayed international flights in and out of Paris Nearly all long-haul flights out of Paris' Charles de Gaulle Airport were late because of the storm and electricity provider ERDF said the winds left nearly 200,000 homes in western France without electricity. 13.49 A beach hut is blown over as a storm hits Brighton Beach on Christmas Eve Christopher Pledger 13.41 Nigel Farage, the leader of the UK Independence Party (UKIP) is one of thousands of people left without power after the storm. He said he had been without any power for 14 hours at his home in Downe in Kent. 13.38 Waves crash over a wall near Saltcoats station in Scotland Getty Images 13.21 Gatwick has announced that from 1pm today all its departing flights would be leaving from its South Terminal. 13.01 People living in Kent have had to move their Christmas presents and belongings upstairs after large areas flooded. Ene Corral, from Edenbridge, said she had moved most of her family's belongings upstairs, including their Christmas tree and all their presents, as flood water lapped 10 yards from her front door. She said: "The Environment Agency came to see us this morning. We are all flooding here but no one has provided us with any sandbags. The storms are meant to be coming again on Thursday and Friday and we have been given nothing to protect us. My neighbour is going to put a barricade up later to try and stop any more flood water reaching us. Other neighbours whose houses have flooded have gone to family nearby. I have some friends coming here later who have also been affected. Parts of Kent, including Edenbridge, Tonbridge and parts of Maidstone, suffered severe flooding following the storm. 12.27 Network Rail said more than 200 trees had come down on lines across the country and a "further 100 incidents." They said most trains were up and running but that several were disrupted by flooding. 12.18 Numerous trains have been cancelled from London Bridge station. 12.09 A train carrying people home for Christmas passes through the Scottish Highlands near Dalwhinnie, Invernessshire HE Media 11.45 Dorset Fire and Rescue Service said it had received more than 300 weather-related calls and some 30 people had been rescued from cars. A fire service spokesman said: "We're still very busy. Please take care. Don't travel unless it's absolutely necessary and please don't drive into any standing floodwater - it can be very deep. Dorset Police said the A35 was closed between Bere Regis and the Bakers Arms roundabout because of flooding, which was up to 4ft (1.2m) deep in places. 11.30 A total of 15 flights have been cancelled at Gatwick and some others were delayed. Passengers complained that there were too few announcements and secondly, that the announcements that were made were inaudible. One traveller said on Twitter: "@Gatwick-Airport is a disaster zone. Power failed, no computers and baggage cannot get to planes. Floors covered with people. The Southern train company were able to start running services to Gatwick airport by late morning, but there were no Gatwick Express services due to run from London to the West Sussex airport before 3.15pm. A Gatwick spokeswoman said: "All North Terminal arriving flights are operating normally and all flights to and from South Terminal are unaffected. We are looking into the cause of the power outage. It's definitely weather-related. We are doing everything we can to get people away for Christmas and we understand passengers' frustrations. We have extra staff helping out in the terminals. 10.59 In Poole in Dorset a 130ft fir tree crashed down onto a family home. BNPS Four friends also spent an hour sat on the roof of their stranded vehicle before they were rescued at 2.30am today in Hamooon in Dorset. Specialist rescue crews had to use an inflatable dinghy to float the friends to safety where they were given the all-clear by paramedics. The flooding problems were caused by heavy rainfall which in turn led to the River Stour breaking its banks. A spokesman for Dorset Fire and Rescue Service said: "When firefighters arrived at the scene at 2.30am they found four people sat on the car roof. The only part of the car visible was its roof lights. Our teams are trained to rescue people from water but the car was so submerged they had to call in a specialist crew. The firefighters had to swim an inflatable dinghy out to the car to rescue its occupants. Luckily no-one was hurt. The people were checked over by an ambulance crew and given the all clear - although the same can't be said for their car. 10.56 Good news from National Express as the coach company said all services, including those to Gatwick airport, are running as usual today. There are no significant delays on coaches, and travellers can track journeys on the company's website. 10.43 The Energy Networks Association (ENA), which represents power companies across the UK, said 150,000 homes were without power, mainly in the south of England. Kent, Surrey and Sussex are the worst-affected areas, while an ENA spokesman said engineers are facing "very difficult and challenging conditions" as they work to reconnect homes. UK Power Networks, which delivers power to eight million customers across the South East, East of England and London, said around 70,000 homes it supplies are without power. 10.35 A mini is caught in floods in Kent 10.20 Passengers stranded at Gatwick airport. Daniel Cawthorne/PA 10.05 South West trains is expecting to run no trains this morning, except hourly services on the following routes; Weymouth-Bournemouth; London Waterloo - Staines/Wokingham/Windsor; Houslow loop; Kingston loop. First Great Western trains have advised that the line is closed bnertween Reading and Gatwick airport. Trains between Barnstaple and Exeter St Davids, as well as Westbury and Southampton, are also not running because of flooding and there is no alternative transport because of flooding. 09.47 Several flights from Heathrow airport have been delayed this morning, flights to Munich are delayed and flights to Madrid, due to set off at 7pm last night have been delayed until around 2pm today. Flights to Shannon that were due to leave yesterday were cancelled. 09.44 Passengers travelling to Devon and Cornwall were left stranded in Taunton in Somerset overnight just before 1am, because of signal and flooding problems. People travelling on First Great Western's service from London Paddington were left in Taunton for hours before being put on replacement buses this morning. 09.39 The c2c train company said most services had resumed, with the company running an off-peak timetable today. Buses had to replace coast-bound trains from West Horndon, Laindon and Basildon stations in Essex due to flooding at West Horndon, while delays and cancellations were likely to continue throughout the morning at short notice. On First Capital Connect and on East Coast services, flooding at Potters Bar in Hertfordshire led to disruption and diversion. Southern and Southeastern are able to operate on some routes. Greater Anglia and First Great Western are among the companies continuing to suffer delays, while London Midland services between Bedford and Bletchley were suspended. 09.37 The Highways Agency has confirmed that five bridges closed yesterday due to high winds have reopened this morning. The Queen Elizabeth 11 Bridge at the Dartford-Thurrock River Crossing on the Kent/Essex border reopened at 5am; the Orwell and Breydon Bridges in Suffolk reopened at 6.15am; the Sheppey Crossing in Kent reopened at 7am; and The M48 old Severn Crossing, between England and Wales, reopened at 8.50am. 09.26 In Shepton Mallet in Somerset flood water has been pouring through a wall. (SWNS) 09.17 The north terminal at Gatwick airport has been hit by delays after a power cut overnight which left passengers unable to check in. The Gatwick Express train service has also been suspended, with operators advising services will not resume "until much later this morning." Southeastern said some trains have started to run this morning, but are subject to delay. 09.07 The Met Office recorded the highest wind and rainfall overnight from December 23 to 7am this morning. The Isle of Wight saw gales of 92mph and Berry Head in Devon 84mph. Kenley Airfield in London had the most rainfall, recording more than 2ins (53.6mm) followed by Charlwood in Surrey which recorded 1.6ins (41mm). 09.00 Good morning. Welcome to the live blog of today's travel and weather. The Christmas getaway has been hit by travel chaos this morning as dozens of trains have been suspended while Network Rail clears the lines of fallen trees and debris and checks they are safe. South West Trains is advising customers not to travel, and said all services will be suspended until 10am. There are currently 28 trees blocking the line and six areas that are flooded. Southern and Southeastern trains have also warned people not to travel and said services are likely to be severely disrupted and delayed this morning. Passengers can check their trains by visiting the National Rail Enquiries website.