Trees were felled and trains and ferry services to France delayed.

A spokeswoman for EDF Energy, the main electricity supplier to the region, urged members of the public to stay away from collapsed power lines.

"We have extra staff working to deal with these faults, but are still being affected by the ongoing weather conditions," the spokeswoman said.

"We are aware that a number of overhead power lines have been brought down and would urge people to stay away from these as some may still be live," she said.

Up to 106,000 homes, mostly in the worst hit southern and eastern parts of the country, were hit by blackouts through the day Wednesday.

High winds forced the P and O cross-channel ferry company to cancel its services between Portsmouth and Cherbourg and Portsmouth and Caen, while Dover-Calais sailings were subject to delay.

Coastguards in Kent went to the aid of a barge driven onto rocks near the coastal town of Margate in the north of the county.

In Sussex two people were rescued from Chichester harbour after their inflatable boat capsized.

One man reported that lightning had burned a hole in the roof of his house and caused a fire.

An English National Opera performance of La Boheme in Trafalgar Square on Wednesday evening was cancelled because of the adverse weather conditions.

Southern England has been bracing itself for unusually and unseasonably bad weather, the result of low pressure and high winds, for Wednesday night and Thursday.

"At this stage we cannot predict when all supplies will be restored as the weather front is still moving through our area," said a spokeswoman for EDF Energy.

Drivers have been warned to take extra care.

TERRA.WIRE