TRANSPORT CHAOS AS STORM CALLUM HITS
WIND CLOSES ROADS, RAIL AND BRIDGES
BY SALLY HIND STORM Callum hit Scotland’s road, rail and ferry services yesterday, with more rain set to lash the country today.
Yellow Met Office warnings were in place in the Highlands and Islands and Strathclyde for wind and rain which closed roads and bridges and cancelled trains on coastal routes.
Calmac cancelled many of their Western Isles ferries for the entire day, while there were fresh landslips at the Rest and Be Thankful in Argyll, delaying the reopening of the key route.
Waves battering Saltcoats’ sea walls meant trains were cancelled between Kilwinning, Largs and Ardrossan.
High winds closed the Dornoch Bridge and Skye Bridge, and motorists were advised to use the Kessock and Erskine bridges with caution.
Images captured by the University of Dundee’s Satellite Receiving Station showed the size of the storm.
Earlier this week at the Rest and Be Thankful, 2500 tonnes of debris from landslips was caught in netting above the A83 in Argyll and Bute, forcing motorists on a 60-mile diversion.
Engineers put work on hold due to Storm Callum.
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency had flood warnings in place for Orkney’s Churchill Barriers and Corpach and Caol near Fort William.
Meteorologists said gusts of 40-50mph had been forecast in the west with the risk of 70mph gusts for exposed parts in north-west Scotland.