Storm Ali lashes Scotland, disrupting transport and cutting off power
KILLER Storm Ali brought winds of 102mph to Scotland yesterday, disrupting transport and causing power cuts. More than 70,000 homes were without electricity and rail, roads, flights and ferry services were all affected.
ScottishPower said 58,000 homes had no electricity, while SSE said 13,000 had experienced cuts.
Around 33,200 remained without a supply last night, with the south-west being the worst hit.
The Forth, Tay and Clackmannanshire bridges were closed to all traffic and high-sided vehicles were banned from the Queensferry Crossing and the A9 Dornoch and Kessock bridges.
A gust of 102.2mph was recorded on the Tay Bridge.
Cruise ship holidaymakers were stranded in Greenock after the MS Nautica was ripped from her moorings at the height of the tempest.
Two people died during the storm.
A woman was killed when a caravan was blown off a cliff at Claddaghduff in County Galway.
Irish police said the body of a Swiss tourist in her 50s was found on the beach after a search.
The caravan could be seen smashed on rocks.
A man in his 20s was killed at Slieve Gullion Park in County Armagh.
It is understood he was doing contract work for Northern Ireland Water.
Emergency services were called to rescue a man trapped under a digger in a river at Rogart in Sutherland.
He was taken to hospital with a suspected fractured rib.
Southern Scotland was hit by some of the worst weather and a “MajorIncident” was declared by Dumfries and Galloway Council.
School pupils were banned from walking home due to fears about flying debris.
Train services in the central belt faced major disruption, with all
services out of Edinburgh Waverley, Glasgow Queen Street and Glasgow Central’s high level cancelled.
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) had nine flood warnings in place, mostly in Tayside.
There were warnings of flooding between Ayr and Troon and at Strathglass in the Highlands, while SEPA also issued more general flood alerts for Tayside, Ayrshire and Arran, Argyll and Bute, Dumfries and Galloway, and west Central.
Falling masonry caused problems in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee and the V&A Dundee was closed to new visitors yesterday afternoon.
Many roads were closed due to fallen trees or branches.
They included the A75, blocked in both directions one mile east of
Collin bypass, the A77 at Cairnryan, the A74(M) at Ecclefechan, as well as the A83 and A76, where a “substantial” tree blocked the road.Large numbers of cars were damaged by debris across the country.
West coast ferry services were severely disrupted, with Argyll
Ferries calling off their Gourock and Dunoon service as winds increased.
CalMac services were suspended for the entire day from Tobermory, Ardrossan, Barra, Oban, Tarbert (Loch Fyne), Gigha, Harris, Iona, Lewis, North Uist and Mallaig.
Police issued a warning about rogue tradesmen trying to cash in on storm damage to homes.
Sergeant Kenny Greig said: “Be aware of cold calling at your door to offer services. They usually turn up unannounced and ask for money up front.”
Police are investigating whether the weather was a factor in the death of a motorcyclist who was killed in a collision with a bin lorry.
The 49-year-old victim was heading east on Glasgow Road in Camelon, near Falkirk, when the tragedy happened. Police are asking for information about the crash.
Anyone who can help should call the road policing unit in Stirling via 101 and quoting incident number 546.