Great Storm 1987

Remembering the Great Storm of 1987

Listen to our 30 minute documentary, recalling the drama of that violent night - and the aftermath. Hear from those involved in the rescue in Dover Harbour; the fireman called to attend to the ferry that had ran aground; the man whose roof disappeared; the head gardener whose life's work was destroyed overnight - and many more. This is their story:

BBC coverage of the anniversary

Watch or listen again to coverage by BBC Radio Kent and South East Today:

Timeline: as it happened

15:10:87

No-one knew it was coming. Even the forecasters thought the depression, fuelled by warm air from the Azores, would follow a path across northern France.

16:10:87 | 02:00 - 06:00

In the English Channel, most shipping sought shelter from the storm but some, like the ferry St. Christopher were caught mid Channel and were being struck by huge waves. In Folkestone, the ferry Hengist broke its moorings and ran aground. In Dover, the cargo vessel Sumnia was sinking with 6 crew on board.

Ambulance crews battled through fallen trees and flying debris to attend to people left dazed, confused and in the dark. Mike Bentley even saw peoples' homes blown away. Listen also to the story of fire officer Geof Cooper who was on duty that night. He attended the beached Hengist and encountered devastation wherever he went.

As a coastguard auxiliary and ambulanceman, Alex Clarke saw some incredible sights on the night of the storm. Called first to the grounded ferry 'Hengist', he then attended the scene of a devastated caravan park in Dymchurch. Read his story - and yours...

16:10:87 | first light

Across the south east, 1.5 million people were without power and the task facing tree-cutters, engineers and the emergency services was daunting. In October 1987, Nigel Hall was engineering foreman for SEEboard:

Police officers in the Sevenoaks area woke to find the town cut off from the outside world. While Adrian Allen responded to calls, his wife Jackie was based in the emergency bunker of Sevenoaks Council, coordinating teams of tree-cutters, army personel and engineers.

The region lost 15 million trees in one night. National Trust properties were devastated. The plateau of Toys Hill lost 98% of its trees. For head gardeners and wardens this was a life's work blown away. But it was also an opportunity to experiment and re-design.

Chimney pots crashing through roofs, trees and branches destroying cars, fences, sheds, caravans and even boats spirited away. The cost of rebuilding would be huge and caught insurance companies off guard.