The Department of Infrastructure (DoI) has declared a major incident as Storm Eowyn wreaks havoc across the island.

Due to the number of trees down and the impact of this across arterial and access routes for emergency services, the DoI says additional resources are needed to help deal with the issues.

Ronaldsway Met Office issued a rare red weather warning on Thursday for strong winds with gusts of 85mph battering the coast and higher ground.

The warning will remain in place until 2pm with an amber warning also in place until 4pm.

Now the DoI feels it has no choice but to declare a major incident as emergency services and authorities become overstretched.

A DoI spokesperson said: ‘Please stay at home and do not travel unless absolutely necessary while this is resolved.

‘Declaring a major incident means that the demand on services is over and above what services can comfortably manage and additional resource will now be called in to assist where it is safe to do so – redirected from other service areas and external contractors.

‘Response teams continue to work tirelessly to keep arterial routes clear, but some teams have been withdrawn due to the risk of falling trees in certain areas.

‘The situation is being constantly reviewed, and updates will be provided in due course.’

There have already been a large number of reports of fallen trees blocking roads with more than 30m closures in place and structural damage to buildings, including Peel power station.

It is also proving to be a very busy time for MUA staff with reports of power cuts in parts of the island.