Disruption warning as heavy rain and strong winds lash Scotland

The Met Office has issued a warning of heavy rain across many parts of Scotland

Heavy rain and strong winds are affecting parts of Scotland.

The Met Office has issued amber "be prepared" warnings for the south west, Lothian and Borders, Central, Tayside, Fife and Grampian.

A yellow "be aware" warning is also in place for the Strathclyde area and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) has issued nine flood alerts.

Transport Scotland has warned drivers that the adverse weather conditions could cause problems on the roads.

The Borders was braced for some of the worst of the weather, with up to 60mm (about 2.5in) of rain forecast on already saturated ground.

Scottish Borders Council has activated its emergency response team and said it expected "the equivalent of an average month's fall in a day".

Chief Executive Tracey Logan said: "The Met Office has been forecasting this weather since the latter part of last week so we are prepared.

"We have additional staff and resources available, and our emergency response team will continue to monitor the situation."

All schools in the region were open as normal on Monday and were expected to open on Tuesday.

One driver in the Borders had something of a lucky escape after a falling tree clipped his car - damaging the wing - as it came down.

It blocked the road over the Gattonside Heights but has since been cleared.

Tayside Police warned of an increased risk of surface water on many routes and possible river flooding across the region.

A spokesman said: "Anyone who is travelling should allow plenty of time for their journey, reduce their speed and drive according to the conditions."

Heavy rain and strong winds were forecast across large parts of Scotland

Transport Minister Keith Brown urged motorists to plan ahead.

He said: "In light of the Met Office warning for wind and rain in many parts of the country, our trunk road operating companies have all their resources available, including patrols, and will pre-position resources in areas of special attention.

"The Traffic Scotland website, Variable Message Signs and Traffic internet radio are being used to provide up to date information to the travelling public, allowing them to plan and amend their journeys accordingly."

He said the multi-agency response team (Mart) would be operational from Monday afternoon until the weather improved.

Marc Becker from Sepa said: "Monday and into Wednesday it will be wet across most of eastern and southern Scotland, including the central belt, with the heaviest rain expected in the east of Scotland from the Borders up to parts of Angus.

"We are working closely with the Met Office to get a better picture of the potential flooding impacts as a result of this heavy rain."