More than 82,000 without power as Storm Boelo batters UK with 84mph gusts

More than 82,000 without power as Storm Boelo batters UK with 84mph gusts

An amber wind warning remains in place until 9pm, having activated hours after the first named storm of the season petered out from the south-west.
Police road closure on the A78 near Skelmorlie, Ayrshire, after Storm Boelo passed through the area (Jane Barlow/PA)

More than 82,000 properties are without power as Storm Boelo continues to batter northern parts of the UK with gusts reaching 84mph.

An amber wind warning remains in place until 9pm, having activated hours after the first named storm of the season petered out from the south west.

On Sunday morning, winds gusts peaked at 84mph in Argyll and Bute, 83mph in Snowdonia and 82mph in the Inner Hebrides, the Met Office said.

Engineers battling severe weather have reconnected 344,900 customers to power but 82,600 are still disconnected, Energy Networks Association said at about the same time.

Footage showed floodwater coursing around the town of Largs, North Ayrshire.

Staff at its Thai restaurant Tha-Tien-Thai shared a video of their kitchen over-run by water with the caption: “There is nothing left.”

It closed its doors for the foreseeable “due to larger flood restoration than originally planned”.

Some flights have been diverted from landing at Leeds Bradford Airport and others were cancelled.

An airport spokesperson thanked customers for their patience, adding: “We appreciate that this is a challenging situation. Our teams are working in very difficult conditions to support passengers as best they can.”

Train journeys were also disrupted. Network Rail Scotland shared an image of flooding from the tracks to the platform in one Glasgow station and fallen trees above the lines near another.

It came after Network Rail posted photographs of a trampoline beneath a train and a shed by the tracks, in a call for those living near rail lines to firmly secure their garden furniture.

Collapsed trees, cables on carriageways, strong winds and damaged surfaces prompted closures to major roads in Scotland.

The amber Met Office warning zone includes Scotland, parts of Northern Ireland and the far north of England.

An amber weather warning is in place across Scotland, the north of England down to Carlisle and the north-east of Northern Ireland (Yui Mok/PA)

It sits within a yellow wind warning zone that reaches further south and runs until 9pm, while another in Northern Ireland lifted at midday.

Storm Boelo follows Storm Austen, the first named storm of the season, which brought strong winds to southern parts of the UK on Friday.

Gusts of 76mph were recorded at St Mary’s Airport in the Isles of Scilly, with 74mph at Aberporth in south Wales and 71mph at Culdrose in Cornwall.

Storm Boelo brings a danger to life from flying debris and crashing waves and people should stay indoors as much as possible, the Met Office warned.

The Environment Agency had issued five warnings that flooding is expected for spots in northern parts of England as of 11am, as well as 33 alerts where it is possible.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency said 34 flood warnings and 11 flooding alerts were active as of the same time.

Original source More than 82,000 without power as Storm Boelo batters UK with 84mph gusts

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