Hundred-mile-an-hour winds and heavy snow are bringing misery to people travelling around Britain, with some drivers stranded overnight following the closure of a major road.
The high winds left hundreds of homes without power , and triggered disruption on the railways with trees and flooding blocking the tracks. The Environment Agency issued 149 flood alerts and 32 flood warnings across England and Wales yesterday, while 21 flood warnings and seven flood alerts were in place north of the border.
In Scotland drivers were left stranded after the snow gates were closed from Blair Atholl to Ralia on the A9. Police Scotland said they had been working through the night with partner agencies including road maintenance company Bear Scotland to ensure the safety of motorists on the A9 following heavy snowfall. The Met Office reported winds of 101mph in Great Dunsell, Cumbria – the highest across the UK yesterday – while other exposed areas also recorded speeds well in excess of 70mph.
In Wales, around 750 homes were left without power due to strong winds. The gale-force winds and heavy rain come during a week of severe weather in the principality, which has included snow, giant hailstones and a tornado which hit Haverfordwest. Two people were taken to hospital after the whirlwind ripped roof sections off six homes.
On the railways a train struck debris from a landslip near Dunning in Perthshire at around 11pm on Wednesday. No-one was injured.
No ScotRail daytime trains were running between Perth and Inverness due to heavy overnight snow.
In the Highlands 15 schools and nurseries were shut due to bad weather, while the Corran Ferry was not operating due to high winds.
Among the rail passengers held up by trees on the line today were those in the West Malling area of Kent who were travelling in the morning rush-hour on Southeastern services between Ashford International and London Victoria/London Blackfriars.
Trees on the line also affected services at Gravesend in Kent, between Uckfield in Sussex and Oxted in Surrey, and between Paddock Wood and Maidstone West in Kent.
Kent Police warned that they had implemented an emergency measure to back up freight traffic along the M20 near Dover in anticipation of severe weather and reduced capacity at the port as a result.
Officials said cross-Channel sailings were subject to delays because of the weather conditions.
Mark Wilson, forecaster with the Met Office, said late yesterday: “Most of the bad weather will be in the next 24 hours. There will be gusts of 70-80mph in exposed areas and high ground. Those are very strong winds and people should be aware of the winds when out walking.”
The latest weather blast follows fierce storms which left 120,000 properties without power in Scotland last week. Cars were stuck and lorries jack-knifed on icy routes as snow, sleet and high winds swept the country yesterday.
In Glasgow part of Bath Street in the city centre was closed after metal sheeting fell from the roof of Marks Hotel.
In Edinburgh, part of Potterrow was cordoned off after cladding on the roof of a building came loose in high winds.
A caravan was blown over on the A66 trans-Pennine route from County Durham to Cumbria, as winds gusted over 70mph.