Perilous
Times and Climate Change
Trail of destruction as Scotland lashed by monster storm
by Staff Writers
Glasgow (AFP) Dec 8, 2011
Schoolchildren dodge the waves created by storm force winds at
Cardswell Bay, Gourock, in western Scotland on December 8, 2011,
as a winter storm rolls in. Scotland closed schools and travellers
were warned to expect disruption on key routes on December 8 due
to gale-force winds, as Britain's first major winter storm of the
season swept in. Photo courtesy AFP.
Scotland was battered by winds of up to 165 miles (266 kilometres)
per hour on Thursday, causing widespread disruption to transport
links, closing schools and leaving tens of thousands without
power.
Thousands of schools around Glasgow and the west of Scotland were
closed, while every major bridge across the country was shut,
flights from the main airports were disrupted and train services
cut.
More than 55,000 people were left without power after falling
trees brought down power lines.
The Met Office national weather service issued a red alert, its
highest warning, in Britain's first major storm this winter.
Gales hitting 165 mph were recorded at the summit of Cairn Gorm in
the Scottish Highlands, while the main cities of Glasgow and
Edinburgh were hit by wind speeds of around 70 mph (113 kph).
Northern England was also hit, with several motorists stuck in
floods, while Wales and Northern Ireland were also affected.
There were accidents across Britain, although no serious injuries
were reported.
More than 300 passengers were stranded for nine hours off the east
coast of northern England when a ferry from Dutch port of
Rotterdam was unable to dock in Hull, due to fears that high winds
could damage the ship if it entered port.
A wind turbine in Ayrshire, southwest Scotland, was destroyed
after bursting into flames.
A spokeswoman for Scottish Hydro, one of the energy suppliers,
said some 500 staff were working to restore electricity but the
storm was hampering their efforts.
"With 100 mph (160 kph) winds, it's very dangerous for engineers
to climb electricity poles," she told AFP.
The northeast of Scotland was expected to be affected worst on
Friday.
"As the storm passes through and moves to the east of the UK on
Friday, northwesterly winds will bring in cold air which will see
a drop in temperatures," said Met Office forecaster Brent Walker.
"This is expected to bring snow to northern and western parts of
the UK, while other parts of the country will see a cold night on
Friday with widespread temperatures of around minus one degree
Celsius (30 degrees Fahrenheit)."