Scotland storm: Work to restore power to homes

The Scottish government is warning that some people may not get the electricity back on in their homes until the weekend after the worst storm in a decade. Engineers are battling to reconnect about 60,000 homes which were without power on Thursday night. Most schools are expected to reopen after many councils and businesses closed early on Thursday. There is still some disruption to rail services. Storm-force winds on Thursday brought down trees, closed roads and knocked out power lines. The Scottish government said the storms had eased over the central belt. However, it warned of severe weather affecting mainly the Highlands, Moray and north Aberdeenshire. Overnight severe winds washed away part of a causeway road on the Orkney island of Hoy. Part of the road surface of the Ayre, which links the communities of Hoy and South Walls, broke up after 22:00 on Thursday and the road remains completely impassable. There are fears more damage could be caused at high tide. In Aberdeen, three families were evacuated from a tenement in the Kincorth area after the gable end of a house collapsed on to a car. No-one was injured. The families have been put up in emergency accommodation until the building can be made safe. Grampian Police said there had been several early morning road crashes in which motorists had driven into trees lying on the road. Grampian Fire and Rescue dealt with 75 storm-related call-outs on Thursday night, three times the normal amount. Many calls were to remove trees and chimney pots and a number of trampolines which had blown away. They also put out grass fires caused by electrical cables coming down. A senior fire officer told the BBC it was the most severe storm in his 20 years of service. On Thursday evening about 50,000 Scottish and Southern Energy/Scottish Hydro customers were left without electricity, along with about 8,000 Scottish Power customers. Engineers will carry on work to reconnect customers at first light, but the Scottish government warned some may be without power until the weekend. SSE Power Distribution said: "We currently have 50,000 customers off supply because of storm damage. "We are working hard to restore power where safe to do so. "We have 100 extra engineers drafted in from the south of England giving over 600 in total working to restore power." The company expected to stand down staff at 22:00 and restart at first light but warned that more customers could lose power overnight before things get better. The main areas affected are Tiree, Oban, Fort William, Kippen, Callander, Coupar Angus, Huntly and Ballater. Vulnerable customers have been contacted to ensure appropriate measures are in place. Advertisement BBC's John Hammond said the blustery weather will be replaced with near freezing temperatures and rain Across Scotland local authorities have been assessing structural damage to schools and council properties. Many were hoping that schools and nurseries could reopen on Friday, but some were due to asses the situation in the morning. Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who has been chairing the Scottish government's resilience committee, said: "While the worst of the weather has subsided across the central belt, other areas of the country are still experiencing severe conditions. "Contractors are working hard to resolve remaining issues on our roads and with power supplies. "I would urge all members of the public to continue to take care and heed advice from police and travel authorities. "The situation across the country will be monitored overnight and the resilience committee will meet again at 08:30 hours tomorrow morning to assess the position." However, Ms Sturgeon warned that some customers may not be reconnected before the weekend.