What it's like to report on a life-threatening storm

News stories about extreme weather affect millions of lives – and that is reflected in huge audiences.

For journalists – they are challenging to cover.

We have the task of putting out information and conveying the seriousness of the situation to the public - and also taking steps to keep ourselves safe.

Red warnings indicate there is a danger to life – and the authorities do not take lightly the decision to issue the alert.

Assessing the risk is part and parcel of our approach to these stories.

After the red warning expired, we made the decision to head out again – to survey the damage, talk more to local people, and assess the scale of the clear-up which communities were facing.

Covering the most intense storm to hit the island of Ireland in many years is a team effort – and we are always reliant on our colleagues in BBC Northern Ireland, who have been gathering material from numerous towns, cities and villages.

BBCNI's headquarters at Broadcasting House in Belfast switched to a back-up electricity generator as the busy lunchtime news period approached.

It was a plan to enable the programmes to stay on air, if the wave of power cuts reached the building.

Whether you are in a newsroom or "on the ground" – having a plan B (and often a C and D) is often valuable.

It's never more important than when covering bad weather.

If the pattern of recent times continues, we'll be doing it more frequently in the coming years.