Thousands of homes could still be without power for the weekend as workers struggle to restore electricity while the country continues to be battered by wind and rain.
Towns and villages across the UK and Ireland are trying to clean up after hurricane-force gales brought down trees and power lines and caused flooding in two storms over the Christmas period.
The Bognor Regis rail route was closed after this landslip at Ockley The Met Office continues to urge caution with a slew of severe weather warnings today and the rain and windy conditions are expected to last up to the New Year.
Hundreds of flights and train journeys have been cancelled and diverted and more than 20,000 homes are without power in the UK.
Police are warning people to take "extreme caution" when driving in the ferocious conditions, which look set to calm after peaking overnight and into this morning.
Power companies have been condemned for failing to restore supplies quickly enough after the storms left 50,000 homes with no electricity on Christmas Day.
On a visit to one affected area in the southeast of England, Prime Minister David Cameron was confronted by an angry flood victim in Yalding, Kent, where homes were severely damaged earlier this week.
This landslip also blocked the line on the Brighton Main Line near Redhill Resident Erica Olivares accused her local council of failing to help flood-affected homeowners.
She told Sky News: "We had no help, especially over Christmas Day. We were totally abandoned, no hot food, no hot drink, nothing, we were up to our waists in floodwater literally the whole of Christmas Day."
Mr Cameron said: "We need to learn the lessons, we are seeing these events take place more event.
"The Government is spending more on flood defences over the next four years than over the last four years.
"There's a lot of flood defences being built, something like 80,000 houses were protected this time but we've got to do more."
The Energy Networks Association (ENA) warned it could be some time until power is restored after last night's storm battered Ireland and the west of the UK, with a top recorded wind speed of 109mph in Aberdaron, West Wales, significantly hampering repair work.
David Cameron is confronted by Erica Olivares ENA spokesman Tony Glover said: "The problem was that not only did we have a storm followed by torrential rain, but huge amounts of flooding afterwards.
"That impacted on our ability to get to the affected areas, and to get materials that we need.
"It meant that we were not able to get cherry pickers to replace and repair damaged infrastructure. We simply cannot put a cherry picker in the middle of a lake.
"We know that it is very tough and that it has been horrendous for people - I am not going to downplay it - but we are doing our best and working around the clock to help everyone who has been affected."
More than 20,000 people across the UK are without power including 3,000 homes in Kent, Surrey and Sussex which have not had electricity restored since Christmas Day, according to ENA.
A man removes items from his home after flooding in Tonbridge In addition, according to ESB Networks, in Ireland, some 15,000 homes and businesses are without power with engineers dealing with hundreds of individual faults.
On the roads, the Highways Agency closed the Humber Bridge to high-sided vehicles due to the winds and a lorry was reported to have overturned near Immingham docks, north of Grimsby.
The worst of the winds hit Ireland, Wales, the North and western Scotland, while rain fell on already soaked ground in the South East bringing more flooding misery.
Southeastern trains restored services later in the day but said they could still be cancelled or delayed at short notice, while Virgin, East Coast and Southern trains also warned of travel disruption.
A man paddles his canoe past a flooded property in Yalding There were no trains between London's Victoria station and Gatwick Airport following a landslip near Ockley in Surrey.
:: Watch Sky News to see weather forecasts on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.
Police and fire services across both the UK and Ireland have reported road closures because of uprooted trees.
A downed tree in Toys Hill, Kent The Environment Agency (EA) is warning of more "significant disruption" across southern England.
But a spokesperson for the agency said overnight rainfall was less than expected, with around 10mm falling in the south east.
The spokesperson added: "The levels are still peaking for rivers with bigger catchment areas, such as the Stour through Canterbury and Ashford and the River Medway, which runs through Maidstone."
Around 1,200 properties have been flooded so far, according to the EA, with 39 flood warnings and 101 flood alerts in place.
The highest ever water levels were recorded downstream of the Leigh Barrier, a large storage reservoir which protects Tonbridge in Kent from flooding.
Met Eireann imposed red alert warnings in the south and eastern parts of Ireland, with Wexford, Galway, Mayo, Clare, Cork, Kerry and Waterford experiencing the worst of the stormy weather.
Waves smash against a flood wall in County Donegal. Pic: Mitchell family AA Roadwatch described driving conditions on Ireland's country roads as "treacherous" - and advised motorists to drive with extreme care.
An elderly couple were treated in hospital after an electricity pole fell on top of their Mayobridge home during the overnight storms, causing a fire which caused widespread damage.
The pair were in their home with their son when the pole hit the roof of the property.
Two other pensioners were also treated after the incident caused smoke and water damage to their home.
Network Rail advises that routes need to be checked and tracks will need to be cleared of any fallen trees and any damage will need repaired before train services can start.
Robin Gisby, managing director of network operations at Network Rail, said earlier: "Passengers have had a tough week of travelling and unfortunately that is likely to continue for at least another day.
"Thousands of railway workers have worked tirelessly over the holiday period to try and repair the significant damage caused by Monday's storm and will be called on again over the next 24 hours.
"As ever, safety comes first, as we ensure routes are safe for passenger services leading to a delayed start-up in some regions."
ESB Networks engineers attempt to repair downed power lines in Ireland Sky News Weather Presenter Isobel Lang said: "If you're travelling today, there will be really squally, buffeting winds everywhere, trans-Pennine routes especially, it will be really bad today."
:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.
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