Experts had to use heavy cutting and lifting gear to break up and retrieve the lorry which plunged off a bridge, killing its woman driver.

The driver of the articulated vehicle, which crashed in high storms in Skipton, has been named as Christine Doran, 49, of Barcliffe Avenue, Moston, Manchester.

The lorry was blown from the flyover which crosses Broughton Road and the Leeds-Liverpool Canal on the Skipton western bypass on Thursday. It plunged about 30ft, landing upside down.

The western bypass was closed from 11am yesterday for recovery work.

An inquest into the driver's death is expected to open and adjourn on Monday.

The authorities across the district launched a major clean-up operation yesterday following the gale force winds that battered the country on Thursday.

Roads surrounding Shipley Town Hall are expected to stay closed until tomorrow after strong winds loosened tiles on the building sending them flying across the streets below.

At the height of the storm, a passer-by was struck by one of the Marley tiles and suffered a head and shoulder injury. He was taken to hospital but is not believed to have suffered serious injuries.

The roads closed off while a structural engineer investigates are Kirkgate with the junctions of Rosse Street, Manor Lane and Windsor Road.

Foxhill Primary School, in Queensbury, was closed yesterday after roof tiles fell into the playground. A school spokesman said it would open on Monday. Ilkley Grammar was also closed after part of the school roof was dislodged by gales.

Bradford Council's street scene department received 60 calls regarding fallen trees and council workers were out all day until late on Thursday and again yesterday clearing up the debris.

A spokesman said: "The priority on Thursday was to make areas safe and open up highways. The clean up operation is likely to continue until the weekend."

CE Electric continued to work overnight on Thursday to restore power supplies to more than 80,000 customers. Fewer than 20,000 customers were still without power yesterday.

The storms also played havoc with waste collections across the district and council litter collectors were still catching up today.

Ian Bairstow, head of waste management for Street Scene, said: "We are working hard to get back on schedule and have put on extra rounds today to do this. We also have crews clearing debris from the streets."

Amanda Lobban, of Ridings Way, Bradford, put her bin out on Thursday morning, but it was not collected.

She said: "Rubbish was everywhere and there were two dents in my car where the bins had hit it.

"You couldn't have driven a car down Ridings Road, because there were wheely bins everywhere."

e-mail: ali.davies@bradford.newsquest.co.uk

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