- Storm Gerrit: 14,000 without power
- Severe weather disrupts transportation
- Scotland faces widespread challenges
Scotland is still without electricity in approximately 14,000 dwellings due to the blizzards and flooding caused by Storm Gerrit.
Cupar, Fife, has experienced property flooding, whereas motorists encountered snow-related stranding on the A9 in the Highlands on Wednesday evening.
One lane of the road that was closed at Scrabster as a result of a landslip has since reopened.
Customers in the north-eastern region and Shetland have been hardest hit, according to the power company SSEN. Some power outages are expected to persist through Friday.
One hundred residences were damaged in other regions of the United Kingdom when a “localised tornado” tore through the Tameside neighbourhood of Greater Manchester.
On Thursday morning, rail services continued to be suspended north of Perth and Dundee, while critical routes connecting Aberdeen, Dundee, and Inverness were also blocked.
Additionally, the A96 at Huntly and the Whitesands region of Dumfries were impacted by flooding. Whereas trees have fallen along the A82 south of Invergarry.
Power Outages Persist
Graeme Keddie, director of corporate affairs for SSEN, reported that approximately 14,000 households remained without power at 07:30 on Thursday, three hours after 31,000 had been reconnected. He stated that the majority of those affected reside in the north-eastern region or Shetland.
He extended his apologies to those without electricity and stated, “Every effort is being made to restore supplies as quickly as possible.”
Despite “extremely difficult conditions,” engineers have made “really good progress,” according to Mr. Keddie.
He advised clients to keep an eye on the SSEN Power Track website. He advised customers without a restoration time estimate by midmorning to call support at 105 toll-free.
Mr. Keddie insisted that the company had implemented “significant enhancements” to its primary network and consumer communications subsequent to the one-week blackout experienced by thousands of people during Storm Arwen in 2021.
On Wednesday, the Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for a significant portion of Scotland.
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Wind Records, Road Closures, and Transport Disruptions
On Thursday at 06:00, a yellow warning remained in effect for Shetland. During that time, Lerwick recorded its highest wind velocity in the past seven years, reaching 83mph.
Highland Council declared a significant incident when the A9 was closed for hours due to heavy snowfall near the Pass of Drumtocher, trapping motorists in their vehicles.
On Wednesday evening, Caledonian Sleeper services to and from Aberdeen, Inverness, and Fort William were cancelled due to a train collision reported near Broughty Ferry station to the British Transport Police.
The photographs captured significant deterioration to the driver’s cab.
Transport Scotland’s director of transport resilience, Stein Connelly, stated, “Although the weather has improved and Met Office advisories have been lifted, surface water and flooding may continue to create hazardous driving conditions.
We continuously urge individuals to exercise caution while traversing the road network, make necessary preparations, and drive prudently.
Some ferry services on Thursday were subject to sudden disruptions or cancellations, according to CalMac.
The operator stated that the CalMac website contained the most recent information regarding disruptions and delays on other routes.
Additionally, NorthLink services from the Pentland Firth to Orkney were susceptible to disruption.
On Wednesday evening, according to First Minister Humza Yousaf, the Scottish government’s resilience operation was activated.
