A TREE was left covering the pavement near a busy supermarket after heavy winds battered Colchester.

It came as three people died after being hit by falling trees as Storm Arwen brought winds of almost 100mph to parts of the UK over the weekend.

John Hyde, who was out with his children George, 9, and Stanley, 6, spotted the snapped tree in Petrolea Close, near Asda, after residents pointed out damage across the town.

It follows the death of a headteacher in Northern Ireland who was killed after a tree fell on his car, while another man was hit by a falling tree in Cumbria, and a third died after his car was struck in Aberdeenshire.

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High winds and rains brought “damaging gusts” across Colchester as the Met Office advised people to stay indoors throughout the storm.

Addressing the position in Essex, Essex Weather Centre said on Friday: "Storm Arwen will bring a danger to life to parts of Scotland and NE England on Saturday with gusts potentially over 100mph.

“Locally, Saturday evening will see gusts of 40-45mph across Essex as the storm clears."