Storm Floris batters UK and causes widespread travel disruption
An amber weather warning, which means there's danger to life, has been in place all day.
Reporter: Sarah Beale
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Channel 4
2 hours ago
- Channel 4
Storm Floris batters UK and causes widespread travel disruption
Storm Floris has been battering parts of the UK, with strong winds causing widespread travel disruption, power cuts and the cancellation of events across Scotland and Northern England and Wales. An amber weather warning, which means there's danger to life, has been in place all day. Reporter: Sarah Beale
Glasgow Times
2 hours ago
- Glasgow Times
Everything we know about Storm Floris in Glasgow
Trains, buses, and several flights to and from the city were brought to a standstill as a 'threat to life' warning came into effect. A Met Office-issued amber weather warning for wind was in place from 10am until 11pm. (Image: Colin Mearns) (Image: Colin Mearns) The storm brought severe and unseasonably strong winds of up to 50 – 70mph inland and 80-90mph in exposed coastal and highland areas. Commuters experienced travel chaos as train services were suspended from midday as a safety measure. Network Rail Scotland had extra response teams, including chainsaw-trained staff on standby throughout the day to respond quickly to any obstructions on the railway. READ NEXT: LIVE updates as all Glasgow trains off during Storm Floris (Image: Network Rail Scotland/X) This was quickly needed when two trees fell on the Glasgow Queen Street to Cumbernauld line shortly after 11am. Emergency services later raced to Kings Park Station in the Southside of the city after a fire broke out on overhead lines near the station. (Image: Colin Mearns) (Image: Colin Mearns) (Image: Colin Mearns) Meanwhile, drivers faced significant delays on the M8 motorway after a trailer overturned on the Kingston Bridge at around 12.40pm. The on-slip road at junction three (Nitshill Interchange) of the M77 was also temporarily shut down due to a fallen tree. At Glasgow Airport, nearly 20 flights were axed due to the storm. Loganair pulled 18 of its flights, which had been due to travel on Monday. Customers were advised they could adjust their travel plans without charge, including rebooking on alternative flights up to seven days from their original travel date. READ NEXT: SQA warns of delays in receiving exam results by post (Image: Colin Mearns) (Image: Colin Mearns) In the city centre, filming for the latest Spider-Man instalment was suspended amid the adverse weather conditions. The decision to pause filming scenes for the Hollywood blockbuster was made as strong winds and heavy rain caused props and set pieces to topple. Images captured by our photographer, Colin Mearns, show the film set abandoned, with props left in place as the crew cleared the area. (Image: Colin Mearns) (Image: Colin Mearns) Elsewhere, pupils across Scotland were warned of delays in receiving their exam results by post due to 'widespread disruption' caused by Storm Floris. The Scottish Qualifications Agency (SQA) issued an urgent warning about the delivery of exam results to several parts of the country on Tuesday, August 5. In particular, Royal Mail confirmed there would be delays in deliveries to the Outer Hebrides, Orkney, and Shetland. Further localised delays 'could also occur at short notice'. READ NEXT: ScotRail warns disruption on Tuesday after Storm Floris Affected candidates were advised to contact their school or college in the first instance if they wanted to know their results. There had been fears that nurseries in and around Glasgow may be forced to close; however, the council confirmed that they were running 'business as usual'. A Glasgow City Council spokesperson said: "We have no plans to close any nurseries. There might be local issues which force a closure (fingers crossed it doesn't), but for now, we are business as usual." On Monday evening, ScotRail warned that disruption could continue into Tuesday following widespread damage to railway infrastructure. Storm Floris caused major issues across the network, including fallen trees on the tracks and damage to overhead power lines. (Image: Colin Mearns) READ NEXT: Trailer overturns on Glasgow's M8 as Storm Floris hits The impact left behind a substantial clear-up organisation to make the railway safe for passenger services to resume. Network Rail teams worked around the clock to clear affected routes and carry out essential safety inspections. Two helicopters were brought in to support engineers on the ground to complete assessments as swiftly as possible. However, some sections of the network required additional checks during daylight hours on Tuesday, meaning further disruption is likely. ScotRail advised customers to check their journeys before travelling using the ScotRail mobile app or JourneyCheck platform. (Image: Newsquest) Homes in Glasgow's Toryglen area faced an unexpected power cut early in the evening. Scottish Power received the report at around 4pm, and the affected postcodes G44 4NL, G44 4PY, G44 4PZ, G44 4QB and G44 4QD went without electricity. The power supplier warned that the issue could be a complex fault, meaning it may take longer than usual to resolve. They said: "Our engineers are onsite. In most cases, our engineers can get your power back on by simply replacing a fuse at the local substation. "However, if the fault is complex, this may take us longer to fix" (Image: Newsquest) The M8 westbound in Glasgow was closed due to 'hanging debris' on an overhead gantry. Traffic Scotland confirmed that the motorway was shut from Junction 18, across the Kingston Bridge, after debris was reported hanging from the structure.
Scotsman
3 hours ago
- Scotsman
Edinburgh festivals diary: Flying chandeliers and venue closures as amber wind warning hits Edinburgh
Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... As I write this, it is late Monday morning and I'm sitting in Assembly's below-ground Club Bar, where I often base myself to work between events. What I hadn't accounted for - or noticed before - was that the roof of this bar, which is adorned with fabric hangings and ornate lighting, is actually a tent. The winds are picking up in Edinburgh and the 60mph gusts are making the structure rock. Staff have been running around picking up bits of (plastic) chandeliers, which are flying off at increasingly regular intervals - and are currently up a giant ladder trying to dismantle the potentially lethal decorations. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Today's amber weather warning driven by Storm Floris is the talk of the festivals. The Pleasance cancelled 72 shows on Monday and closed its main hub, not helped by The Green venue in the Pleasance Courtyard resembling a temporary, tent-like structure. Meanwhile, the Edinburgh International Festival scrapped its Ceilidh Sessions event tonight because of the city council's decision to close Princes Street Gardens due to the storm. North Berwick's Fringe by the Sea has also been forced to cancel its entire programme for Monday. The Edinburgh International Book Festival, preparing for a Saturday opening, has had to reschedule some of its planned building work on its outdoor tents, but people there tell me there is 'plenty to be getting on with inside' and there will be no delays to the event. Pleasance Courtyard, where The Green is situated. | Pleasance Courtyard, where The Green is situated. Other venues are having a more relaxed attitude to the gusts. I've been watching and waiting for Underbelly's purple cow to take off and fly into the Edinburgh skies like some kind of bizarre hot air balloon. But so far it has remained on terra firma, with the venue's PR team repeatedly insisting it is 'business as usual'. Hopefully the collective weight of sell-out audiences looking for an indoor activity on this breezy day will hold it down. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad For one Fringe performer, however, there are no problems, just opportunities, as my dad would say. Climate comedian Matt Winning, who has a daily show at Assembly on the climate crisis called Sostalgia, has emailed journalists offering commentary on the extreme weather. Wrong city At the weekend, I met singer Hannah Rose Platt, who is performing her entire album, Fragile Creatures, at Surgeon's Hall. She admitted to me she accidentally booked her gig in the wrong city - but is happy she did. Given the material, about women's fight for bodily autonomy, Ms Platt, from Bristol, was looking for a medical-themed place to perform and online, came across what she believed to be the Royal College of Surgeons in London. 'I was looking for a place to perform and something popped up, saying they were looking for artists at Surgeons Hall,' she explained. 'I filled it in without realising it was in Edinburgh and then got an email offering me a venue for a Fringe show. I can't believe it, I've always had a childhood dream of bringing a show here.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Evacuation
