SEVERE gales and snow showers caused travel disruption, school closures and left thousands of people without power yesterday as Storm Caroline swept across to the UK.
Forecasters had earlier warned of a danger to life, with gusts of up to 90mph possible in northern parts of Scotland.
Flights and ferry services were cancelled while dozens of schools were closed across the north of the country.
Rail passengers also faced disruption, with trains cancelled after a trampoline blew onto the line in East Renfrewshire and services suspended elsewhere.
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) said power had been safely restored to more than 11,500 customers, mainly on the Western Isles and north-west Highlands, with about 4600 homes, mainly in Caithness, Orkney and Shetland without power as of 4pm yesterday.
SSEN said winds in excess of 85mph were recorded in the Western Isles while Mountaineering Scotland tweeted that a gale of 116mph was recorded on Cairngorm. A 73mph gust was recorded at Stornoway Airport while a 69mph gust was measured at Altnaharra in Sutherland. Gales reached up to 68mph in South Uist, the Met Office said.
The strong wind warning was valid from 6am until 11.55pm yesterday, with an amber warning issued for northern Scotland. The Met Office warned of flying debris that could lead to injuries or danger to life and damage to property.
All schools and nurseries in Lewis, Harris and Uist in the Western Isles were closed to pupils as a precaution while 31 primary schools, five secondary schools and 19 nurseries in the Highland Council area and two schools in Aberdeenshire are shut.
Some flights in the Western Isles were cancelled, while Caledonian MacBrayne ferry services between Tarbert and Lochranza, Oban and Tiree via Coll and Ullapool and Stornoway were cancelled while many other routes are facing disruption.
The Forth Road Bridge and Tay Road Bridge were closed to double-decker buses while the Skye and Kessock bridges were closed to high-sided vehicles.
Forecasters have issued a yellow severe weather warning for snow and ice today which covers much of Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and parts of northern and western England.
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