Congratulations to our fantastic Non-Emergency Patient Transfer Service (NEPTS) team who won the Outstanding Team award at the Channel Islands Customer Service Awards.

The award recognised the extra care, compassion and service they showed to an end of life patient.

The award was collected by Team Leader Nicky and her Deputy Dave.

Congratulations to the whole team! It is truly deserved.

Island FM St John International ... See MoreSee Less

Storm Austen is currently at its peak in Guernsey, with wind speeds of force 8 and gusts of up to 60mph. The top windspeed from the storm has likely already been recorded at 05:41am at 76mph.
Wind should ease slightly by midday, but still remain strong this afternoon, and heavy, intermittent rainfall will continue throughout today.

There have been no serious incidents resulting from the storm, although emergency services have responded to a number of reports of fallen trees this morning, the majority of which have already been cleared either by fire crews or tree surgeons. Crews also responded to reports of structural damage at a private property in the early hours of this morning.

Northside is currently closed because of tiles coming loose on a building.

Thank you to the public, as roads have remained largely clear which has allowed services to quickly respond to reports as and when needed.

We will continue to monitor the situation as the storm passes over the islands, and we’d continue to encourage people to take sensible precautions until wind speeds have returned to normal levels. ... See MoreSee Less

In preparation for Storm Austen, the ambulance service in Guernsey and Alderney put arrangements in place which have been continually reviewed based on the latest information. The safety and protection of patients, staff and volunteers will continue to be our priority.

Operational changes may be needed during the storm, and at times there may be delays to ambulance responses. For medical emergencies the public is advised to call 999 in the normal way. Calls will be triaged with the priority being given to life-threatening cases.

A paramedic officer has been stationed at the Joint Emergency Services Control Centre (JESCC) to assist with clinical triage. For some less urgent calls, medical advice from a clinician may be given over the phone.

Additional ambulance crews and Operational Commanders have been on duty overnight and into Friday.

The Non-emergency Patient Transfer Service (NEPTS) is delaying early cases. Any patients whose journey is not essential will be contacted by the NEPTS team and the journey rescheduled.

For the latest information please follow the States of Guernsey social media pages. ... See MoreSee Less

Islanders are encouraged to continue checking the dedicated Storm Austen page for the latest information: gov.gg/stormausten

This is the best place for up-to-date information about States of Guernsey services and any disruption. Many services are making localised arrangements, and these are being added to the page as they are confirmed.

Some community care visits tomorrow morning may be rearranged to a different time if they aren’t urgent. The community care teams will still be out visiting people, but visits may be later than usual if roads are closed or there are travel delays. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

As previously announced, States customer counters will be closed tomorrow morning while the worst of the storm passes, reopening from 12noon. This includes Health & Social Care's Le Vauquiedor Office, which will be closed to the public until 12noon. Other Health & Social Care reception and counter services may also have changes to their morning opening, depending on local arrangements. The lunchtime Bosom Buddies session at the library has been cancelled.

Most public-facing services are expected to return to normal from 12noon.

Most planned (elective) operations are going ahead as scheduled.

The Courts are expected to run as normal tomorrow, and the Greffe customer counter will be open as usual. Unless contacted directly otherwise, people should turn up for court.

Generally, islanders are encouraged to use common sense, avoid unnecessary travel during the peak of the storm, and take extra care when outside. ... See MoreSee Less