Scots urged to stay indoors as Storm Eowyn could bring 100mph winds

People in Scotland have been urged to stay indoors after the Met Office issued a red danger to life warning for wind on Friday.

Trains have been suspended across the country and hundreds of schools are closed after forecasters predicted wind speeds of up to 100mph.

Vehicles have been blown over and roads in some areas are closed due to debris from Storm Eowyn, with a gust of 86mph recorded at Dundrennan in Dumfries and Galloway at 9am.

Buses across Scotland have also been widely disrupted and ferries across the country have been cancelled, according to CalMac.

Police Scotland said no motorists should travel in or to the red weather warning area.

They said the A1 between Spott Roundabout and Cockburnspath, East Lothian, is closed due to a number of overturned vehicles.

Emergency services are at the scene and people have been warned to avoid the area.

The A709 is closed on the Lockerbie side of Lochmaben in Dumfries and Galloway due to fallen trees between Lochmaben High Street and the Halleaths junction.

The A75 has closures at Collin bypass and Skyreburn Bridge, Dumfries and Galloway, due to fallen trees, as does the A76 at Newbridge, Leswalt High Road in Stranraer, the A746 at Glasserton Road, Newton Stewart, and the A709 at various places surrounding the Lockerbie area.

Road maintenance firm Bear Scotland shared an image of an overturned lorry on the A1 at Torness.

The Met Office red warning runs from 10am to 5pm and covers the central belt including Glasgow and Edinburgh, stretching north on the west coast to Jura in Argyll and Bute and south to Stranraer in Dumfries and Galloway.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency has a total of seven flood alerts in place, in Argyll and Bute, Ayrshire and Arran, Dumfries and Galloway, Skye and Lochaber, west central Scotland, Wester Ross and the Western Isles.

It also has three, more severe, flood warnings in effect from Ayr to Troon in South Ayrshire, and East Luce Bay and West Luce Bay South in Dumfries and Galloway.

Schools and nurseries across Scotland are closed, except in five council areas, while non-urgent planned hospital procedures have been postponed in NHS Lanarkshire and NHS Lothian.

Forecasters said the weather conditions bring a “risk of significant disruption to transport and power supplies as well as dangerous conditions outdoors”, with “very dangerous” driving conditions because of fallen trees and other debris.

They also warned of the potential for damage to buildings and homes.

Police Scotland Chief Superintendent Hilary Sloan said: “Our advice to any road user is not travelling, and that’s really the message we want to get across.

“It’s really unusual for us to have a red weather warning and that advice is in place for the duration of that warning.”

In a statement at the Scottish Parliament on Thursday, First Minister John Swinney said: “The Met Office advice is clear, the potential impacts include danger to life, structural damage to property and transport and power disruptions.

“We have to be clear, people should not travel.”

CalMac Ferries and Western Ferries said Friday’s planned sailings have been cancelled.

Glasgow and Edinburgh airports saw dozens of flights cancelled on Friday morning due to the weather conditions.

While no trains are running in Scotland on Friday, Network Rail Scotland has posted images on social media of railway infrastructure that has been damaged, including a tree resting against overhead wires above the track near Largs, North Ayrshire, and a fallen tree which damaged overhead wires at nearby Kilwinning.

Public buildings, such as libraries, have also been closed by a number of local authorities.

Scotland’s Deputy First Minister urged Scots in the central belt to follow the advice not to travel.

Appearing on BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme, Kate Forbes said: “It is so important that people follow Police Scotland’s advice not to travel because if people stay at home and don’t travel then it means they don’t invite that risk to themselves.”

Ms Forbes also warned that recovery from Storm Eowyn could “take longer than we all hope”.

She added: “It is important our expectations are managed by how quickly things can return to normal and there may well be continuing disruption tomorrow.”