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3 DEAD AS 100MPH STORM WREAKS HAVOC

Three killed in hurricane-force winds that blacked out 100,000 homes and whipped up 36ft waves

By Patricia Kane and Paul Drury

THREE people were killed and properties and vehicles badly damaged across Scotland as hurricane-force winds battered the country during the worst storm for years.

Gusts of up to 100mph saw Storm Arwen leave a trail of destruction across large swathes of the country with thousands of families last night facing a second day without power.

The extreme weather, which lasted throughout Friday night and into the early hours of yesterday morning, also saw trees uprooted and roofs torn from buildings, as well as massive disruption to transport services – and a mop-up bill estimated at millions of pounds.

Police Scotland had warned people not to travel ‘under any circumstances’ in areas, particularly the east coast, covered by a rare red weather alert last issued during the freak ‘Beast from the East’ snowstorm in March 2018.

At its height, 42 passengers were stranded on a train in Aberdeenshire for 17 hours, and two police officers had a miraculous escape elsewhere in the county when their van was crushed by a falling tree.

The officers were dealing with a tragic incident nearby in which a 35-year-old man was killed by another tree landing on his vehicle as he drove on the B977 at around 5.45pm on Friday.

Last night, Sergeant Craig McNeill, of the Divisional Road Policing Unit at Inverurie, said the man, who was driving a Nissan Navara pick-up truck, was struck by the tree on the Dyce to Hatton of Fintray road, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

He said: ‘Our thoughts are very much with the man’s family and friends at this time.

‘Officers responding had parked a distance away due to weather con

ditions. On returning to their van, they discovered a tree had fallen on it. No one was injured.

‘Any witnesses to this crash or anyone with information is asked to contact 101.’

A full report will be sent to the procurator fiscal.

Meanwhile, a father of four was killed in Northern Ireland when a tree fell on his car while he was out with his wife and two of their children in Antrim on Friday afternoon. He was named as Francis Lagan, the head teacher of St Mary’s Primary School in Maghera.

Another man died in Ambleside, in Cumbria, when he was hit by a falling tree.

Yesterday, amber and yellow warnings remained in place in the Highlands, the Central Belt, Gramof pian, Orkney and Shetland, with gusts of 60-70mph still being recorded in exposed locations.

Major disruption also continued on the rail network throughout most

the day as safety checks were carried out on a number of routes.

Train bosses described the ongoing efforts to get the network back up and running following the extreme weather as the ‘most challenging in recent memory’.

At the height of the storm, a barn was blown onto the line near Polmont, Stirlingshire, and a train also collided with a trampoline that blew onto the tracks in Fife.

There were cancellations and delays to Caledonian MacBrayne ferry services.

Coastal areas of Angus, Fife, Aberdeenshire, Moray, East Lothian and the Borders were the worst affected during the storm, with the Met Office’s highest threat warning in place from 3pm on Friday until 2am yesterday.

Strong gusts were recorded in Inverbervie, Kincardineshire, at 78mph, while in Lossiemouth, Moray, it was 74mph – the highest recorded since 2015.

Wave heights of up to 36ft were recorded in the outer Firth of Forth during the storm.

At Aberdeen Airport, flights were grounded until midday yesterday, while at Edinburgh Airport on Friday, one flight bound for the capital was reportedly forced to turn around and fly back to London because it was unable to land due to the winds. For all the disruption, there were tales yesterday of how locals went above and beyond the call of duty to help others.

Bus passengers in Aberdeen became stranded when services came to a standstill on Friday night, but local taxi drivers came to their rescue, helping dozens reach their final destination.

And 42 passengers, stuck overnight at Huntly, in Aberdeenshire,

‘They discovered a tree had fallen on their van’

when the 3.25pm Aberdeen to Inverness ScotRail train was brought to a halt were kept well fed by train staff who ordered pies and hot rolls for them from local bakers, and even managed to source a kettle for teas and coffees.

As dawn broke yesterday, the full extent of the devastation in Arwen’s wake became clear, with power lines brought down and 100,000 homes left without electricity, as well as properties and vehicles torn apart by the force of the wind.

Photos on social media showed damage caused in Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire. One picture showed a garage roof that had blown off and hit the side of a nearby house.

Others showed a caravan which had been swept up by the gusts and eventually landed upside down in a front garden in Dundee.

Shocked Lanark FC found their stands and buildings destroyed and the debris scattered across the football ground.

Police said a ‘substantial number’ of roads remained closed yesterday due to fallen trees and other debris in Aberdeenshire, Moray and Tayside, and repeated their calls for the public not to travel unless necessary.

Aberdeen City Council said last night that all its roads were now open after ‘recovery work’ throughout the day.

Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) said that 75,000 of its customers’ homes across Scotland were still without power yesterday morning.

The firm had restored power to more than 40,000 homes, but warned the weather was hampering its work, particularly in Aberdeenshire, including Aboyne, Ballater, Braemar and Elgin, as well as Callander and St Fillans in Perthshire. Mark Rough, director of customer operations at SSEN, said: ‘The impact of Storm Arwen continues to be felt across much of the country and has resulted in significant damage to our network across the north of Scotland.

‘Our teams have been out since first light to fully assess the extent of the damage – supported by helicopter patrols to identify the worst affected areas – as we continue to restore power to customers in what remain very challenging conditions.

‘Despite detailed preparations, the prolonged and severe nature of the weather continues to hamper efforts to restore supplies, with the high winds only subsiding from the early hours of the morning.’

Scottish Power said yesterday that while 74,000 homes had been reconnected in Scotland, England and Wales, there were about 14,000 customers still without power by tea time.

Those were mainly in Dumfries, Fife and Lothian and the Borders.

Welfare facilities have been set up for those whose power supplies continue to be affected and hot food and drinks are being provided at venues including Aberfeldy Village Hall in Perthshire; Carnoustie Leisure Centre in Angus; and other centres in Kintore, Tarland and Mintlaw in Aberdeenshire.

Yesterday, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said that calls to its emergency line had almost trebled during the storm – particularly from people in Aberdeenshire, Moray, Fife, East Lothian and the Borders. John Dickie, Assistant

‘The impact is still being felt in much of country’

Chief Officer, said: ‘This has been an exceptional weather event and a challenging night.’

Last night, Met Office forecasters said it was ‘an improving picture now’ across the country as the storm moved south.

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