Island prepping for Storm Goretti's strong winds

Businesses and property owners are preparing their premises for Storm Goretti, with wind gusts of up to 90mph (144km/h) expected.

Strong winds and heavy rain have been forecast for the Channel Islands, with powerful gusts expected from 18:00 GMT until the early hours of Friday morning.

The owner of a kiosk on the west coast, Mim Sarre, said she felt "anxious" and had secured items inside the building, while supermarkets and Bailiwick airports plan to close early.

The States of Guernsey has warned the storm is expected to be "significant" and asked people to be at home by 18:00 when the weather is expected to deteriorate.

Sarre said she would be checking her kiosk for damage at 06:00 on Friday.

"Luckily the pizza truck is on solid ground so I'm going to leave it where it is," she said.

"We decided to close at 16:00 to make sure all staff are home and safe before things start.

"We've moved everything down and put everything inside where we can."

The warden of Lihou Steve Sarre has been making preparations to the island's house which was badly damaged in Storm Ciaran in 2023.

"I'm starting to screw some doors closed and prep as much as I possibly can," he said.

"The gable end of our house is facing westerly, so there's nothing between us and the sea other than the Hanois lighthouse, so we're pretty exposed on this elevation."

GSPCA Manager Steve Byrne has given advice on how to protect animals.

"Owners of pets and animals that are kept outdoors need to ensure their animals are safe and have adequate shelter and provisions," he said.

"You might need to think about keeping your cats indoors and taking care to ensure you walk you dog when the wind drops."

He added: "Animals living out in fields may also need to be brought indoors and wherever possible ensure they have safe shelter."

With the strongest winds predicted to start from 18:00, some island businesses are closing earlier than usual.

Island branches of Co-op and Waitrose plan to shut at 18:00.

Marks and Spencer stores are shutting at 19:00 and the Guilles Alles Library plans to close at 17:00.

Both Guernsey and Alderney airports will close early at 18:00 with the last outbound and inbound flights already cancelled.

While the airports are expected to reopen by 07:00 on Friday, disruption is expected to continue first thing.

Beau Sejour leisure centre is set to close at 17:30.

The States of Guernsey closed the Perelle coast road at 13:00 and has asked islanders to stay at home from 18:00.

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