Weather: Thousands Still Without Power

Hundreds of flood warnings remain in place across the UK as more showers are likely to delay further the clean-up operation at flood-hit homes this weekend.

The Environment Agency has issued more than 130 flood alerts across central and southern England - with 34 in areas urging residents to take immediate action.

Showers will mainly affect western and southern England, Wales and parts of Scotland before a light storm moves in tomorrow.

The authorities efforts to deal with the chaos caused by the first storm on Monday were hampered by the arrival of a second storm on Boxing Day night.

Yesterday power companies were condemned for failing to restore supplies to thousands of people - some who had been without electricity since Christmas eve.

The Energy Networks Association (ENA) said that 13,000 homes were still without power across the south of England and Wales.

More than 3,000 people in Kent, Surrey and Sussex have been without power since the Christmas Eve storm, according to UK Power Networks.

Meanwhile, about 5,000 customers in Northern Ireland were without electricity after severe gales overnight on Thursday.

David Cameron was confronted by angry flood victims in Yalding, Kent

And around 35,000 homes were last night without power across the Republic of Ireland after being battered by Thursday night's storm.

In the south east of England, Prime Minister David Cameron was confronted by an angry flood victim as he visited a village seriously affected by the latest storms.

The unnamed woman said her local council had done nothing to help villagers in Yalding, Kent, where homes had been severely damaged.

In a heated on-camera exchange with the PM, the woman said: "We still have no electric. We need electric.

"As I say the council, from Monday we have been trying to contact them, but they have all decided to go on their holidays. Nothing."

There continues to be disruption to rail services

Mr Cameron appeared rattled as he tried to defuse the confrontation by promising to contact the council himself.

The network operator's promise to have everyone affected by the Christmas Eve storm back with power by the weekend did little to quell the anger of customers.

Stephanie Chapman, 54, from Yalding, said she wished she had been given more warning about the floods.

ENA spokesman Tony Glover apologised to those affected by the storms, but highlighted the difficulties technicians had been facing.

He said: "The problem was that not only did we have a storm followed by torrential rain, but huge amounts of flooding afterwards.

A tree rests on a power line in East Peckham, Maidstone, Kent

"That impacted on our ability to get to the affected areas, and to get materials that we need."

ScottishPower said it had now reconnected 14,500 customers who lost power during Thursday night's storm.

Robin Gisby, managing director of network operations at Network Rail, said this week "has been one of the most challenging periods we have faced in recent times".

Thursday night's storms meant that several trains were delayed yesterday morning so lines could be examined in daylight before trains set off.

The line from London to Portsmouth via Haslemere is blocked by four landslips near Liphook, and will stay closed over the weekend.

The track at Ockley between Horsham and Dorking is also closed following a serious landslip.

The Environment Agency has issued 130 flood alerts

North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) took to Twitter to warn people about going outside in the gales.

A spokeswoman said the service had taken half a dozen calls in Lancashire alone about people being blown over by the wind, though only minor injuries were reported.

NWAS said that, as a precaution, people should stay indoors, out of the windy weather.

Conservative MP for Hastings and Rye, Amber Rudd, criticised Southeastern trains for failing to provide a replacement bus service for her constituents in the commuter belt towns.

While Southern Rail was offering workers the option of commuting to London via bus and even using Twitter to post regular updates, Southeastern services, including their communications, had been "lamentable", she said.

Many homes have been severely damaged by the floods

"So Southern have really done very well," said Ms Rudd. "I think it's partly because they've got Gatwick Airport on their tail wanting a better service.

"But Southeastern has not been anywhere near as good, and I have received a lot of complaints about them. They have been just too complacent".

The RAC has reported a 20% increase in breakdowns across the country, rising to a 40% increase in the south and south east between Christmas Eve and yesterday.

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