Severe weather warning: check before you travel

The Met Office has Amber (be prepared) warnings in place for very strong westerly winds across the north and the central belt.

Parts of Strathclyde, Central, Tayside, Fife and the Lothians will be affected by conditions until around 0800 hours on Friday with gusts of 60-70 mph quite widely expected. The Western Isles, the north and north-west of the mainland and Orkney will see gusts of 80 to 90 mph with a risk of gusts of over 100 mph in places until around midday.

The rest of the country is covered by a Yellow (be alert) warning and winds should quickly ease from the west throughout Friday, before picking on Saturday morning.

Responder authorities in the areas expected to be affected are activating their plans to deal with the potential impacts.

There is expected to be disruption on the transport network and a Multi-Agency Response Team (MART), involving partner organisations, such as Police Scotland, is being activated to monitor conditions and make sure that the public has the latest information.

Utility suppliers are increasing staff resources and putting back-up resources in place to deal with potential disruption to power supplies.

Deputy First Minister, John Swinney said: “The weather fronts will bring particularly strong winds across the north-west of Scotland, the islands and across the central belt overnight and when people are making their way to work in the morning.

“The Scottish Government’s Resilience operation is actively monitoring weather developments and receiving updates from the Met Office, SEPA and the utilities companies, as well as keeping in touch with emergency responders and councils at a local level in the areas likely to be affected by adverse weather

“Contingency plans are being made by transport authorities and passengers should expect cancelations and disruption on ferries and the railways. The travel operators websites will have all of the latest information and people should check them before they set-off on their journey.

“On the roads, bridges could be affected by high winds, and driving conditions could be challenging, particularly for high-sided vehicles. Motorists should allow extra time for their journeys and check the Traffic Scotland website before they set-out.

“Utility companies are increasing resources and moving them to places where the storm is likely to damage the electricity network.

“The Scottish Government’s annual campaign, Ready for Winter, is a good reminder of the simple actions we can all take to prepare for adverse conditions. Information is available at www.readyscotland.org”

SEPA Hydrology Duty Manager David Faichney said: “We are currently in the process of preparing flood alerts and warnings for areas where there is a potential for impacts. We remain in contact with our partners through the Flood Forecast Service and will ensure detailed flood forecasts are available to responders.

“As always we would encourage the public to be mindful of the weather forecast and remain vigilant to the risk of flooding in their area by checking the active flood updates on our website at www.sepa.org.uk/flooding or by signing up to Floodline on 0345 988 1188.”

David Dickson, Network Rail route managing director for Scotland, said: “Safety has to be our first consideration during severe weather. We will be withdrawing a limited number of services on exposed routes tomorrow until the worst of the storm has passed to allow our engineers to thoroughly inspect the network for any damage.

“We will be monitoring conditions on the ground closely throughout the night and into the morning and will have teams ready to respond to any issues caused by the storm.

“We are working closely with the train operators, and other industry partners, to reduce disruption as much as possible while also operating a safe network for passengers.”

SEVERE WEATHER ADVICE

Severe weather has the ability to disrupt our daily lives, in all sorts of ways, like the loss of power and property damage. By knowing what to do to prepare, you will reduce the risks.

Weather conditions and warnings

• These can change quickly, so it is essential to keep up-to-date with the latest weather forecast and weather warnings from the Met Office.
• Know the Met Office warnings.

Travel

• Consider the conditions before you set off and think about how severe weather can impact on you. See Ready Scotland’s advice on travelling.
• For real-time journey information, listen to radio reports or visit the Traffic Scotland website/ twitter feed.
• For public transport information, check the Traveline website/ twitter feed.
• If driving, ensure you and your vehicle are adequately prepared for the conditions.

Loss of utilities

• You can take straightforward steps to cope with the loss of power and other utilities.

Flooding

• Check SEPA’s website for the latest flooding alerts or call Floodline on 0345 988 1188. You can also sign up to SEPA’s free Floodline direct warning service.

Strong winds

• Like flooding, severe winds can occur at any time of year. See Ready Scotland’s advice on how to prepare for severe windy weather.

Severe weather can strike at any time so taking action now will serve you well in winter, and all year round.

In the last few years, we’ve seen it all – snow, floods and strong winds. And it doesn’t take much for it to impact on our daily lives. Like getting stuck indoors for a few days, or losing your phone communication, power or water supply.

Severe weather can cause a range of problems – but you can be ready for them. By doing a few small things now, you can save yourself a lot of trouble later on.  You can also do your bit to help out in your community.

See below for information and useful tips on how to prepare:

• In your home
• On the move
• In your community
• In your workplace