Storm Kathleen sparks 43 flood warnings in Scotland as power cuts expected

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Storm Kathleen looks set to rage on for another day as Scots have been warned of potential flooding, power cuts and travel disruption.The 11th named storm of the season, which arrived in the UK on Saturday April 6, has been causing very strong and blustery winds which wreaked havoc with air and rail travel yesterday.These high winds, coupled with spells of heavy rain, are likely to continue today, Sunday April 7 - bringing a risk of further disruption which Scots should be prepared for.The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) has 18 regional flood alerts and 43 flood warnings in place in Scotland.

They have been in force since Saturday.The Met Office has also issued a new yellow wind warning to come in force at 9am on Sunday, affecting parts of the east and northern Highlands, the Isle of Skye and the Hebrides.

It will remain in force until 3pm.Winds as high as 73mph were recorded in Drumalbin, South Lanarkshire. A previous warning stretched from the Scottish Borders to just south of Stirling, spanning the west coast, throughout much of central Scotland, and ended just short of the east coast.Vincent Fitzsimons, Sepa’s flood duty manager, said: “Across the weekend, Scotland is braced for impacts from Storm Kathleen including very high winds and coastal flooding in western areas.“Flooding impacts are expected across western coastal areas throughout the weekend.“Impacts start in the Solway coast and Firth of Clyde on Saturday and then move around the coast to the eastern side of the country over the next few days.

Of particular concern is the likely impact to communities in the Western Isles and Orkney late Saturday and across Sunday.“On top of already high tides, Kathleen will bring a storm surge and large