Major Emmerdale Storylines - The Storm (2003)

The Storm (2003)

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Emmerdale was to experience another big disaster ten years on from the plane crash as a storm put villagers in peril. The storyline paved the way for Tricia Dingle's exit and provide a lot of New Year drama and a ratings boost for the show. The storm hit the village on New Year's Eve 2003 and saw popular characters such as Ashley Thomas and Louise Appleton become stuck on the roads as a result of the terrible weather with Ashley so hurt that he could have lost his leg but they were saved in time. The episode also focused on Marlon and Tricia Dingle. Marlon had had a one-night stand with his cousin Charity Tate when Tricia was in India and when Tricia found out he had been unfaithful, she decided to leave him and the Dales. However, upon reading the 101 reasons as to why Marlon loved her, she decided to reconcile with him and headed back to The Woolpack.

Upon reaching the Woolpack, lightning stuck an oak tree which caused Tricia to trip, and another bolt hit the roof of The Woolpack causing the roof to collapse and the chimney to fall through. This in turn caused the wall of the pub to collapse onto a helpless Tricia. She was taken to hospital, critically injured, and was put on life support until Marlon decided to finally let her go.

Ashley and Louise were rescued from the rubble, and in an extension of the storyline, popular character Bernice Thomas, made a brief return. Viewing figures for the special hour long episode averaged 10.7 million. Ratings soared and the storyline went down in Emmerdale history. The year to come would see the show gain an even higher profile.