High winds force attractions and school to close

Various attractions, events and a school have been forced to close due to high winds across the East of England.

The Met Office has issued a yellow wind warning across most of England and all of Wales, which is valid until 18:00 BST on Monday.

Ingoldisthorpe Primary School in Norfolk has been shut to staff and pupils, after a tree fell and took down a power line.

Whipsnade Zoo and many National Trust estates have also made the decision to close, with gusts due to peak at about 55mph. The Met Office said travel disruption and power cuts were possible throughout Monday.

The A11 was closed on Monday morning heading southbound at Bridgham, Norfolk, due to a fallen tree on the road.

On Sunday, Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service was called to Harleston Road, Fressingfield, after a tree branch went through a car. All four people trapped inside were rescued and passed into the care of the paramedics.

Experts have warned there is a greater risk that branches could drop from trees during high winds, due to an exceptionally dry summer.

Members of the community came together to clear a large tree that had fallen across a road in Milton, near Cambridge, on Monday morning.

A local farmer used machinery to move the trunk from the road and others helped move debris so traffic could safely enter and exit the residential part of the village.

UK Power Networks said some customers had been affected by power outages, including 740 homes in Essex, 420 in Norfolk, 285 in Cambridgeshire and 283 in Suffolk.

Elsewhere, Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire posted on Facebook that it would be closed for the entire day due to "adverse weather".

Several National Trust run sites, including Felbrigg Hall and the Oxburgh Estate in Norfolk, Lyveden in Northamptonshire and Lavenham Guildhall in Suffolk, have closed to the public.

The gardens at Stowe House in Buckinghamshire have also been shut for safety reasons, which has prompted the closure of the house itself and the cancellation of a scheduled Heritage Open Day.

Burghley House, on the Cambridgeshire-Lincolnshire border, has also been closed with all areas affected - including the house, gardens, visitor facilities and parts of the parkland.

Bressingham Steam and Gardens, near Diss in Norfolk, said it would shut for the whole of Monday, promising to reopen once the wind subsided.

Hedingham Castle in Essex was forced to cancel its Andrea Bocelli outdoor cinema screening on Sunday evening, due to the windy weather.

The Met Office said the winds would slowly ease from the west later on Monday afternoon and into the evening.

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