A councillor has praised the resilience of a Northumberland community one year on from Storm Arwen.
On November 26 last year Storm Arwen swept across Northumberland with winds of up to 98mph battering the area.
Thousands of people were left without power as high winds caused severe power outages across the North East.
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Northumberland County Council and Durham County Council both declared a 'major incident' with troops arriving to help local residents and perform welfare checks.
The Northumberland town of Rothbury and surrounding areas were among the worst hit in the region, with some residents going 11 days without power.
Rothbury councillor Steven Bridgett, who played a vital role in the response, said: "The wind started to pick up on the Friday and the first issue happened before the power even went off, the mobile network failed.
"I remember watching down the high street and leaves were on the ground and the wind would pick them up, they were going down the street like little mini tornadoes. It would start and last for about 15 metres down the street and start again. I've never seen anything like that before.
"I think the problem was the direction of the wind as it came from the north. The power went off, the roads were blocked, there was a mobile communication problem and it wasn't until the next morning we realised there was a water supply issue as well."
Coun Bridgett said contractors worked through the night to get the roads reopened so emergency response teams could get to work.
Rothbury regained power after 48 hours but residents further afield were left without electricity for up to 11 days as teams tried to repair the lines. The community rallied together to help those struggling with heating or electricity.
Coun Bridgett said: "I have said this many times before, it is what we do here - whether it is a landslip, biggest manhunt in history or an exploding crane, you name it. We just rally together as a community."
Tragically, Coun Bridgett confirmed one person died after they were left without heating for a week.
Now, plans are being put into place to ensure the community is ready for any future weather events.
The county council launched a review to establish what lessons could be learned from the incident, which included agencies working more closely together, updating emergency plans, sharing information and making sure residents can be aware of what help is available.
Coun Bridgett said plans are being brought together for residents in the Rothbury area which will see the town hall become a key hub.
He said: "We are going to enhance Rothbury Hall and create a satellite hub. Residents will know where to go, if there is a power cut they can get hot food, charge their phone and get information.
"We are going to get satellite phones so we can communicate with other halls and coordinate people.
"If there is a complete communication failure again and phones don't work we want to get a photocopier so we can print information off to give to residents."
As part of resilience planning, Coun Bridgett has been pushing for mobile phone masts to have a back-up generator and fuel storage after the breakdown in communication last year.
After a "lengthy battle" Vodafone 02 has agreed to install one, Coun Bridgett said. While there are fears events like these may become more common, Coun Bridgett said his job would not change.
"All I know is I have got to do my best as an elected representative for the area," he said. "To ensure the the residents I represent are looked after."
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