Storm Boelo: tens of thousands still without power as man killed by falling tree and more wind warnings issued
About 30,000 homes are still cut off after gusts of up to 85mph, schools are shut in the north east and Highlands, and new yellow warnings cover much of Scotland into Tuesday.
A fallen tree blocking a road. File photo. · Photograph: Oregon Department of Transportation (CC BY 2.0)
Tens of thousands of homes across Scotland remain without electricity after Storm Boelo battered the country over the weekend, with forecasters warning of more strong winds on Monday night and Tuesday.
A 60-year-old man died after being hit by a falling tree at Mid Kelton, near Castle Douglas in Dumfries and Galloway, on Sunday. Gusts of up to 85mph were recorded during the storm, the second to hit Scotland in a matter of days.
Power cuts
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN), which covers the north of Scotland, said about 29,000 homes were still without power on Monday morning. SP Energy Networks said about 1,500 homes in Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway were still cut off, with most expected to be reconnected on Monday but a very small number likely to wait until Tuesday.
Almost 100,000 homes had their power restored across the two network areas over the weekend.
SSEN's head of customer operations, Nik Wheeler, said engineers were working to reconnect homes before Tuesday's weather arrived, but he could not guarantee they would manage it in time.
More warnings
The amber wind warning ended at 9pm on Sunday, but a yellow wind warning covers the south west of Scotland from 6pm on Monday until 3am on Tuesday, with gusts of up to 65mph possible on the coast. A second yellow warning covering most of Scotland, as well as parts of northern England and Northern Ireland, runs from 3am to 9pm on Tuesday.
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) has issued an amber flood risk for the Northern and Western Isles and Caithness and Sutherland. It warned of large waves along the Solway Firth and Firth of Clyde and possible storm surges in Shetland.
Schools closed
More than a dozen primary schools in Aberdeenshire and Rothiemay Primary in Moray were shut on Monday because of power cuts. Ellon Academy closed because of storm damage, and Fraserburgh Academy opened only for S4 to S6 pupils. Twelve primary schools and nine nurseries in the Highlands were fully or partly closed.
Travel
Network Rail said most services had been restored, but the Crianlarich to Oban and Inverness to Wick and Thurso lines remained closed. Speed restrictions will be in place on the West Highland, Kyle and Highland Main lines on Tuesday morning. ScotRail said the vast majority of its trains were running normally.
CalMac said 28 of its 30 routes were disrupted on Monday, and NorthLink warned of possible disruption until Thursday. Several roads remained closed by debris, and police urged drivers to stay vigilant and consider whether journeys were really necessary.
Flooding on the coast
In the Aberdeenshire village of Crovie, resident Ann Wiseman said waves crashed against roofs and sandbags could not keep the water out, describing it as the worst in more than 20 years.
In Largs, travel agent Shona Thorne said her business was completely flooded and called the storm surge bigger than anyone had seen. Firefighters pumped a huge volume of water from a care home in Saltcoats on Sunday evening, while the A78 Inverkip Road in Greenock and the A77 at Lendalfoot were among roads closed by flooding.
Two women were injured by a falling tree near Aberfeldy's 'bouncy bridge' in Perth and Kinross. In South Ayrshire, police evacuated dangerous buildings in Ayr and helped 15 people stranded at a flooded caravan park in Ballantrae.
In Galloway, a mountain rescue team took nine hours to bring an injured runner off Curleywee Hill after extreme winds forced a coastguard helicopter to turn back.
Government response
The Scottish Government's resilience room met on Friday and again on Sunday. Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said there were challenges ahead and urged councils to review their readiness, and households to check on neighbours and friends.
Police Scotland Assistant Chief Constable Mark Sutherland warned that disruption was likely to continue well beyond the end of the amber warning because of fallen trees, damage and further bad weather.