Flood fears as Storm Bert heads into second day

Parts of Scotland are bracing for a 2nd time of disruption with precocious winds and localised flooding aft Storm Bert swept dense snowfall and rainfall crossed the country.

The cardinal loop was deed by much snowfall that anticipated aboriginal connected Saturday, causing wide problems connected the roads. The M8 saw agelong postulation jams and 2 of the main routes southbound - the M74 and A68 - were closed for a clip owed to accidents.

Lothian buses suspended each of its 70 routes crossed Edinburgh and surrounding areas.

But an amber upwind informing for rainfall and snowfall successful the eastbound of Scotland was downgraded to a yellowish informing for rainfall which volition stay successful spot until 09:00 connected Sunday.

In an antithetic move, the Queensferry Crossing crossed the Firth of Forth was closed owed to the menace of falling ice.

Traffic successful the country was diverted via the Forth Road Bridge. The diversion was owed to stay successful spot until 01:00 connected Sunday.

David Bishop from the nationalist roadworthy attraction assemblage Bear Scotland said the closure was owed to concerns that crystal sticking to the bridge's 70km of cablegram stays could autumn and origin a "significant roadworthy postulation incident".

It is the archetypal clip since 2021 the span has closed.

All 700 buses successful the Lothian Buses fleet crushed to a halt for overmuch of the time owed to pugnacious roadworthy conditions.

The institution announced services were backmost to mean aboriginal connected Saturday evening.

Edinburgh sightseeing buses were cancelled and determination was disruption connected Citylink, McGill's and First services.

A melodramatic representation shared connected societal media showed a autobus which had near the roadworthy astatine Buchlyvie, a colony successful the Stirling area.

George Henry, caput of roadworthy information and roadworthy argumentation for Transport Scotland, said the conditions had been "challenging".

He said: "We person been treating our roads astir the clock, our operating companies person been retired and we person utilized implicit 240 gritters.

"Unfortunately determination has been immoderate impacts with assorted vehicles being stuck owed to immoderate vehicles losing traction astatine assorted determination and we’ve tried to dainty that arsenic rapidly arsenic we tin to minimise the disruption to the motoring public."

Mr Henry said peculiar incidents had impacted the M8 adjacent Livingston and the M74 astatine assorted points connected Saturday.

He added attraction is present turning to the hazard of localised flooding caused by the somesthesia rising and snowfall melting.

"There volition beryllium tons of aboveground h2o truthful we impulse the motoring nationalist erstwhile they are returning to the roads to delight instrumentality attraction and thrust to the conditions they are faced with," helium added.

Regional flood alerts person been issued for parts of Dumfries and Galloway, westbound Borders, Central, Tayside, Aberdeenshire, Dundee and Angus regions.

While a flood informing urging radical to "act now" is successful spot for the Churchill Barriers successful Orkney.

A full of 11 SPFL games were called disconnected with kick-off times delayed connected different three, including 2 successful the Premiership.

One of those called disconnected was a league 2 lucifer betwixt Cove Rangers and Stenhousemuir, aft the distant team's autobus got stuck successful snowfall astatine Broxden Services outisde Perth.

Over 3,000 homes successful England and Wales are without power. Scotland has not been deed arsenic hard, with some Scottish Power and SSE reporting conscionable a fewer localised faults.

The Met Office has warned a accelerated thaw and consequent rainfall whitethorn origin further disruption.

A yellowish upwind informing for rainfall and snowfall remains successful spot for astir of Scotland until 09:00 connected Sunday.

The Highlands and Argyll and Bute volition spot winds of up to 65mph connected Sunday, with a yellowish informing has been successful spot from 12:00 until 00:00.

Forecasters accidental Storm Bert volition beryllium rather dilatory moving and volition lone commencement to wide from Monday.