Kirstie Allsopp forced to apologise for ‘mowing people down’ and brands herself a ‘lunatic in a mac’ amid travel chaos caused by Storm Ciaran

Kirstie Allsopp has been forced to apologise for ‘mowing people down’ as she battled the travel chaos caused by Storm Ciaran on Thursday. 

The TV host, 52, branded herself a ‘lunatic in a mac’ as she fought her way through London’s Paddington Station to catch a train to film Channel 4 property show Love It Or List It in Chester. 

Storm Ciaran’s tornados have been battering Britain as 104mph winds  and were likened to a ‘disaster movie’ leaving 127,000 homes without power.

Following her stressful trip across the country Kirsty told her X, formerly known as Twitter followers: ‘Apologies to anyone I just mowed down going through Paddington’. 

‘I was the lunatic in a mac with wet hair shouting “sorry! sorry!” & desperately pleading with the ticket gate operator when my ticket wouldn’t scan. I love my job, and I’m very lucky to have it, but the travel is crazy’.

After arriving safely in Chester she shared a video to her Instagram to show the sun shining brightly and not a cloud in the sky.

Saying: ‘Afternoon petals, this is the river Dee, which is looking exceptionally pretty today, right through the middle of Chester. Really sunny, with no sign of Storm Ciaran here and really pretty architecture’.

‘Now, I’m off to Stockport this afternoon, having done a Love or List it here in Chester.’ 

Before adding: ‘And then tomorrow with our favourite person [co-host Phil Spencer] in Chippenham, where I think Storm Ciaran may be a little more of a concern anyway, have a lovely afternoon!’.

The Channel Islands were worst hit with dozens of homes on Jersey evacuated as a tornado blew through, trees were ripped up and huge hailstones smashed windows.

Roofs were torn off houses and trampolines were blown onto railway lines, with train operators urging commuters to work from home amid widespread disruption. 

CCTV footage from Sompting, Sussex, captured a suspected tornado throwing debris in all directions, leaving behind it a scene of destruction today.

The footage shows heavy rain pounding on the camera before flying debris crashes onto the ground and becomes strewn across the car park. 

Elsewhere a tornado hit Jersey, causing roofs to be dramatically lifted off houses and carried away in 104mph gusts.

The hurricane-force winds, brought on by Storm Ciaran, caused havoc on the Channel Island with many homes having their windows smashed through, tiles flung off buildings and garden furniture turned upside down. 

James Watts and his colleagues, who work at Coverzone, discovered the Sompting tornado footage after parking a vehicle in the car park to try out a new car cover. 

Mr Watts claimed he found debris strewn across the car park when he arrived at work earlier today.

‘When I reviewed the CCTV footage, I was shocked to see what appeared to be a tornado passing through,’ he said. 

‘My colleague Lukasz had arrived to work one minute before it struck and had to seek refuge in his car before entering the building. 

‘The roof of the adjacent building was blown off during the peak winds. It all happened in a space of 2 minutes from calm, to wild and calm again.’ 

His colleague, Lukasz Dziecielski, said: ‘I parked my car and it became very nasty. I could see some objects flying from a roof, as well as some tree branches.

‘I had to stay in my car for three or four minutes as it was too dangerous outside.’ 

Meanwhile the tornado that hit Jersey caused roofs to be dramatically lifted off houses and carried away in speedy gusts of wind. 

Dozens of islanders were forced to take refugee in hotels and community centres when the tornado rampaged through their homes in the early hours of this morning.

Terrifying footage taken during the night shows the sky lit up with lightening as roofs in the distance get chucked into the air along with other debris as heavy rain continues to pour down.