Storm Boelo brings 80mph gusts and travel disruption to Scotland

Storm Boelo has brought 80mph gusts and travel disruptions to much of Scotland this weekend, shortly after Storm Austen brought heavy rain to many areas on Friday.

The Met Office has warned of potential injuries and danger to life from flying debris as well as a chance of damage to buildings, power cuts and travel disruption.

The amber wind warning came into force at 9pm on Saturday night, and will remain in place until 9pm on Sunday, with only Orkney remaining under a yellow warning.

The storm brought 80mph wind gusts to Islay, just off the West Coast in Argyll and Bute, overnight on Sunday.

Stirling Castle ahead of Storm Boelo (Jane Barlow)

PA Wire

Tiree saw 82mph gusts at about 4am, and in the Glasgow region, the Met Office recorded up to 62mph wind gusts at the same time.

It has also caused disruptions from fallen trees and flooding on the roads in Scotland overnight.

In a series of updates on social media, Traffic Scotland said several A roads remain closed in some areas on Sunday morning, including:

– The A1 motorway is closed in both directions at Ayton due to power cables on the carriageway;

– The A75 between Collin and Carrutherstown is closed in both directions due to fallen trees;

– The A82 at the Bridge of Orchy is closed in both directions due to fallen trees;

– The A78 Shore Road in Skelmorlie is closed in both directions due to damage to the road surface;

– The A85 at Achnacloich is partially blocked in both directions;

The A83 is closed in both directions at Inveraray due to a fallen tree.

Other A roads, including: the A84 at Runacraig; the A87 at Breakish; A726 at Righead Roundabout; and the A76 at Drumlanrig were closed overnight due to fallen trees, but were reopened by 8am on Sunday morning.

A social media post from Traffic Scotland said: “Several trees have fallen across the trunk roads in Scotland overnight due to Storm Boelo.

“Teams are working hard to deal with these incidents as quickly and effectively as possible. Check your route to avoid disruption on the roads today.”

Sections of two motorways were also closed earlier, but have since reopened.

The M74 motorway was closed northbound between Junctions 7 and 6 due to a fallen tree, and the M8 motorway was also closed at Junction 18 eastbound due to flooding, but reopened just before 5am.

Many ferry services across the country have also been cancelled or are facing disruption.

Of CalMac’s 30 ferry services, 24 have been cancelled, some of them until Monday.

Three other services are facing disruption or last-minute cancellations because of the weather.

Several rail lines in western and northern Scotland have also closed as a result of the strong wind and heavy rain warnings across the country.

Services south and west of Kilwinning in North Ayrshire stopped from 9pm on Saturday while further north the Oban and Mallaig lines closed from about 10pm.

On Sunday, the line between Kyle of Lochalsh and Achnashellach in the Highlands will be closed from the start of service, as well as the railway between Wick and Helmsdale.

ScotRail said speed restrictions are also expected across much of the network from late Saturday night and throughout Sunday, with the potential for restrictions to remain in place on the Far North Line between Inverness and Wick into Monday morning.

These restrictions mean trains will operate at lower speeds than normal, resulting in longer journey times, delays and possible cancellations.

ScotRail has advised people to check before travelling and to consider alternative arrangements where possible.

The rail operator also said people with tickets for travel on Saturday or Sunday can travel on any service on Saturday, or use their ticket once routes reopen following the storm, including on Monday.

As of 12pm on Saturday, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) had 11 regional flood alerts and 10 local flood warnings in place across parts of the country.

The agency said there is a risk of surface water, river and coastal flooding across many parts of Scotland this weekend.

“A band of persistent rain will affect most of Scotland through Saturday,” Sepa said in a social media post.

“By the evening, it will turn much windier bringing widespread high winds and severe gales with particular concern around coastal flooding impacts for western areas.”