TWENTY years ago The Great Storm of 1987 ravaged the South Coast, causing millions of pounds of destruction to homes, trees and nearly all that stood in its path.

On Monday the Daily Echo commemorated the 20th anniversary of the worst storm to hit Britain in 300 years, with a pictorial reminder of the night that shook the country.

That evening, October 15, 1987, the BBC weatherman Michael Fish made what was to become an infamous blunder, stating that the hurricane forecast to batter Britain would not come.

Instead, millions of home- owners woke to a different story.

In total, 19 people were killed, including two firefighters from Highcliffe who died after a tree collapsed on their fire engine.

One of the four survivors of that incident, David Bryant, will recount his memories on the ITV television documentary Britain's Biggest Storm at 9pm on Tuesday October 16.

The programme will use computer-generated technology and first-hand accounts to recreate the horrors and acts of heroism of the night.

The Highcliffe tragedy is among the night's events to be reconstructed, while many eyewitnesses will still remember the sight of around 100 elderly residents of the nearby Greystones sheltered housing complex being led away from their home after 125-mile-an-hour winds ripped the roof from their building.

  • Send your pictures or video footage of the 1987 storm to us at newsdesk@bournemouthecho.co.uk or Daily Echo, Richmond Hill, Bournemouth, Dorset, BH2 6HH.