Heavy rain and high winds cause travel disruption
- Published
The A83 at the Rest and Be Thankful has been closed after an estimated 53mm of rainfall overnight
Heavy rain and strong winds are causing flooding and travel disruption across Scotland.
The Met Office, external has issued a yellow rain warning for much of the south and west of the country for Saturday.
The A83 Rest and Be Thankful has been closed and Scotrail has reported delays, external on a number of routes.
As of 15:00 the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, external (Sepa) confirmed 38 flood alerts and warnings were in place across the country.
Mark Franklin, Sepa's flood duty manager, said: "Heavy rain and strong winds are expected across much of Scotland on Saturday and Sunday.
"Flooding impacts from rivers and surface water are possible across much of the south west and west of Scotland, including Argyll, much of central Scotland and extending across Tayside into Angus and Aberdeenshire.
"Impacts may include flooding of land and roads, disruption to travel and difficult driving conditions."
The extreme weather also caused flooding on the Old Military Road, which is used as a diversion when the A83 is closed
Mr Franklin added that spray and waves along the Solway coast, west coast, the Caithness, Sutherland and Moray coastlines and around the Orkney and Shetland Islands may also cause problems.
In Aberdeen the city council was distributing sandbags because of a risk of flooding in the Footdee area of the city.
Rail services at Queens Park in Glasgow were suspended for a time on Saturday after a trampoline blew onto the line.
ScotRail tweeted a picture of it jammed next to a train.
A trampoline disrupted services at Queens Park in Glasgow
The A83 and the Old Military Road at the Rest and Be Thankful will remain closed for the remainder of Saturday and overnight due to "significant rainfall" .
An estimated 53mm of rain fell on Friday night and in the early hours of Saturday, and a decision was taken to close the Old Military Road at around 08:20 after flooding in the area near the River Croe.
Traffic is being diverted via the usual standard diversion route on the A83, A82, A85 and A819 where additional patrols will be in place to help ensure the roads remain clear and safe.
High winds caused part of a building to collapse in Helensburgh
Eddie Ross, Bear Scotland's North West representative, said: "Since the closure this morning, two landslides have occurred above the A83 which have predominantly been caught in the debris nets although the events are continuing.
"Excess water has also washed material onto a section of the Old Military Road.
"With poor weather set to continue overnight we will reassess the situation at midday on Sunday."
In the seaside town of Helensburgh in Argyll and Bute,pictures a road was closed after high winds caused part of a building to collapse.
One resident said it appeared large chunks of masonry had fallen from a disused building that was in a poor state of repair.
Meanwhile, an outdoor light show in Glasgow's Botanic Gardens was cancelled because of the stormy conditions.
GlasGLOW organisers itison said in a statement: "There are currently high winds, and whilst the gardens themselves are safe, we have lots of barriers throughout the gardens for social distancing, which are vulnerable to high winds.
"We're absolutely devastated to have to cancel, especially at short notice, but the wind has picked up to a level where we need to be cautious."
The company added all ticket holder will be refunded.
- Published31 October 2020
