PENZANCE’s Christmas tree has been secured into place in the town centre ahead of the arrival of Storm Bert this weekend.

With a window of opportunity before the Met Office’s yellow warning for wind comes into force, the 25ft-high Cornish-grown tree was put up on Friday morning (November 22).

Purchased by Penzance Council from Santa Trees in Liskeard, the stunning Christmas tree was transported by A R Newport, who used their crane to lift it into place with the help of Robin Hawkins from High Maintenance and the Leisure and Amenities team from the town council.

Wooden chocks were used to secure the huge tree trunk into position in front of the statue of Humphry Davy, with extra measures taken to prepare for the incoming winds. The tree will now be left to settle over the weekend, before the branches are adorned with Christmas lights next week once Storm Bert has passed.

Amy Simons, operations officer at Penzance Council commented: “We haven't put the lights up yet, because we've got Storm Bert coming in this weekend. We're going to let the tree settle in, but we may have to come back on Monday morning to re-straighten it after the really high winds. And then, later on next week, we'll put the Christmas lights up, all ready for the Penzance Christmas Lights Switch On next Saturday, November 30.”

With weather warnings in place for Saturday and Sunday, the Met Office have stated that strong winds due to Storm Bert are likely to cause dangerous coastal conditions and disruption across southern England.