Monday morning blews
80mph gusts forecast as we’re lashed by Storm Brendan
SCOTLAND is bracing itself for more stormy weather tomorrow as Storm Brendan blows in from the Atlantic, bringing torrential rain and strong gales of up to 80mph.
Forecasters have warned today is the calm before the storm as a ‘deep feature’ moves in to west and north-east Scotland, Orkney and Shetland.
A yellow ‘be aware’ warning has been imposed from noon tomorrow until midnight and experts warn it is expected the wild conditions could cause difficulties to road, rail, air and ferry services, with power cuts also being an issue.
Met Office forecaster Alex Burkill said: ‘For Scotland, it seems to be one blow after another at the moment. The rest of the week is looking very unsettled.’
Rain and winds touching 70mph sparked travel chaos yesterday, closing part of the A1 on the East Coast to all traffic until midafternoon and causing a landslide on the A7 at Skipper’s Bridge, south of Langholm, Dumfriesshire.
Ferries were cancelled on the West Coast in the morning and at one point in the afternoon, environment watchdog SEPA had 44 flood warnings or alerts in place.
Trains were halted due to flooding on the line between Kingussie and Aviemore in Inverness-shire, and Network Rail said power was lost on the line between Glasgow Central, Ayr, Largs and Ardrossan in Ayrshire. Trains between Glasgow and Edinburgh were also halted for a time due to flooding.
The Tay Road Bridge in Dundee was closed to all traffic, before reopening later to cars and singledecker buses, with a 30mph speed restriction.
Meanwhile, there were delays on the M80/M9 junction at Bannockburn and on the M8 in Glasgow.
Cold air descending overnight also poses an ice risk this morning after yesterday’s downpours.
‘One blow after another at the moment’