A young father was among four people killed as Storm Eunice wreaked havoc across the country, leaving Britain with a £500million clean-up bill.
Jack Bristow, who had a one-year-old son, died when the flat-bed truck he was travelling in was crushed by a 40ft tree in Alton, Hampshire, on Friday.
Tonight the driver of the van was in hospital recovering from “serious injuries”. Both men are believed to be in their early 20s.
In a heartbreaking message online, Jack’s girlfriend Courtney Emmett wrote: “Please God bring my love back to me. I love you Jack.”
She added: “It’s all still so very raw.”
One of his pals, Bradley Hall paid a touching tribute: “Jack was loved by everyone who’s met him and was always down for a chat. He was a proud father and a loving partner to his girlfriend.
“He was his mum’s precious lad and will never be forgotten about.”
Council worker Billy Kinsella, 59, another dad of one, also died after being hit by a falling tree while clearing debris from a road near his home in Co Wexford.
Sinn Fein councillor Fionntán Ó Súilleabháin said: “People in the area are devastated. It is such a tragedy for his wife Rita and their only child Conor.
“Billy died in the line of duty while out doing council work and attending the scene of a fallen tree. He died in a manner that makes it most tragic.”
A woman in her 30s was killed after a tree fell on a car in Haringey, north London, and a man in his 50s died in Netherton, Merseyside, after debris struck the vehicle he was travelling in.
High winds and snow yesterday continued to cause chaos and bring misery to millions.
And the Met Office warned “very strong winds” are set to continue today in parts of Northern Ireland, Scotland, some Irish sea coasts, with heavy rain in parts of north-west England.
Yellow rain and wind warnings remained in place for the entire south coast and south-west Wales. Up to 200,000 homes were still without power more than 24 hours after record winds of up to 122mph bombarded Britain in the worst storm in decades.
Football matches were yesterday called off and travel chaos continued with airports and ferry companies battling to catch up on cancelled services.
The M48 Severn Bridge remained closed in both directions “due to forecasts of further high winds”. Flood warnings remained in West Sussex and Shropshire.
Many train services were cancelled as National Rail reported “major damage” across the network.
Parts of Lancashire saw snow and ice, with thrill-seekers evacuated from the Big Dipper rollercoaster at Blackpool Pleasure Beach after it ground to a halt.
The O2 Arena remained closed while engineers examined damage to its tent fabric roof.
And an incoming flight from Italy to Stansted Airport was forced to divert over 700 miles to Oslo, Norway, because of high winds.
Amid the stories of tragedy, there were also some miracle escapes.
A train managed to stop just 20 yards before hitting a tree after braking sharply on the Kent coast to Victoria line outside Longfield, near Dartford.
A horse had an astonishing escape after ten firefighters spent seven hours freeing him after he was left trapped under three 100-foot-tall trees that crashed next to him in a field in Ludgershall, Wiltshire.
Dad-of-two Dominic Good, 57, and his family were “very lucky” to remain unscathed after a 400-year-old oak tree crashed through the roof of their home in Essex.
His son also had his Mazda MX5 car “completely crushed” by the branches of the toppled oak.
Match of the Day pundit Ian Wright walked away unscatched after the car he was travelling in suffered a crash while travelling to the BBC show’s studio.
Posting a photo of himself standing near the smashed up car on the M56, he wrote: “Not a straightforward trip up for @BBCMOTD! Thankfully nobody was hurt.
“Be careful out there, lots of water on the road. Thank you to my amazing driver Jay and the brilliant emergency services
And celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay, 55, and his family had a narrow escape after a giant tree was uprooted near his home.
The Hell’s Kitchen star’s south west London home luckily stayed safe after it was almost hit by a massive mature tree, which crashed into a brick wall in between two neighbouring properties.
Malcolm Tarling of the Association of British Insurers said: “Every storm is different.
“But it’s obviously a severe one and is going to affect large parts of the county and built up areas so there will be significant properly damage.”
A Network Rail spokesperson said: “We have got thousands of workers out clearing trees and other debris off the railway. As the day goes on the picture has improved in some areas.”
