Strong gales hit Scotland with Yorkshire on the alert today
SEVERE GALES and snow showers caused travel disruption, school closures and left thousands of people without power as Storm Caroline swept in to the UK – with warnings of bad weather in Yorkshire today.
Forecasters had earlier warned of a danger to life, with gusts of up to 90mph possible in northern parts of Scotland.
Flights and ferry services were cancelled while dozens of schools were closed across the north of the country.
Rail passengers also faced disruption, with trains cancelled after a trampoline blew onto the line in East Renfrewshire and services suspended elsewhere.
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) said power had been safely restored to more than 11,500 customers, mainly on the Western Isles and north-west Highlands, with about 4,600 homes, mainly in Caithness, Orkney and Shetland, without power as of 4pm yesterday.
SSEN said wind gusts in excess of 85mph were recorded in the Western Isles while Mountaineering Scotland tweeted that a gust of 116mph was recorded on Cairngorm.
A 73mph gust was recorded at Stornoway Airport while a 69mph gust was measured at Altnaharra in Sutherland and 68mph in South Uist yesterday morning, the Met Office said.
Met Office meteorologist John West said: “Storm Caroline is well on its way across northern parts of the UK.
“There will be devastating winds in some parts.
“More broadly across Scotland there will be 60mph-70mph gusts, but in exposed areas we could see 90mph.”
During yesterday afternoon, a mixture of sleet and snow showers will work their way across the whole of Britain, with the potential for blizzard conditions in Scotland.
Forecasters have issued a yellow severe weather warning for snow and ice today which covers much of Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and parts of northern and western England.