Scots urged to take care as Met Office brings rain warning into force

Storm Austen is expected to bring heavy rain to much of Scotland over Friday, with residents, drivers and business owners urged to take care.

A Met Office yellow warning for rain came into force at 7am on Friday.

The warning area includes much of Scotland, from as far south as the Borders and Dumfries and Galloway to Fraserburgh in Aberdeenshire.

Parts of the west, including all of Ayrshire, Lanarkshire, and Glasgow are affected, with the majority of the east also forecast to be hit by rain.

The Met Office website said there is a “small chance” homes and businesses could be flooded, causing damage to buildings.

Commuters have been warned to check the availability of trains and buses, while spray and flooding may affect drivers and cause road closures.

There is a chance communities may become cut off due to flooded roads, and power cuts are also possible, the forecaster said.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) has 11 flood alerts in place in the same areas where the Met Office’s yellow warning is in place.

Sepa’s flood information system has three tiers, of which food alerts are the least severe, with warnings and severe warnings brought in when the flooding is worse. There are currently no warnings or severe warnings in place.

ScotRail’s services to and from Aberdeen, Glasgow Central to Edinburgh and Glasgow Central to Carlisle may face speed restrictions or cancellations, and Traffic Scotland urged motorists to stay tuned for updates.

Ferry operator CalMac said on X that several of its services may be subject to disruption.

Scotland faces more poor weather on Saturday and Sunday as a result of Storm Boelo, with an almost nationwide yellow wind warning in place from 6pm on Saturday until 9pm on Sunday.