Thousands still without power after Storm Amy sweeps across UK

Engineers are still trying to reconnect 8,500 homes in Scotland which suffered power cuts in the wake of Storm Amy, which battered the country on Friday and into the weekend.

Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) said that, as of 8.30am on Monday, their teams had reconnected 80,000 households and work is under way to restore power for 8,500.

As the clean-up work continued, most rail lines were able to run on Monday morning though some in the Highlands are still affected by storm damage.

The transmission network company said: “Today, several hundred engineers and tree-cutting specialists are once again working across the network to restore power to customers.

“A comprehensive welfare operation is also under way; our own staff and volunteers from the British Red Cross are visiting our most vulnerable customers.

“Meanwhile, several food outlets, which served more than 9,000 meals to our customers yesterday, are serving hot food this morning in affected communities.”

SSEN said it expected the majority of customers to be reconnected by the end of Monday, adding: “While the weekend’s storm-force winds have finally subsided, the extent of felled trees and storm debris blocking access to some areas where the network has been damaged continues to pose challenges.”

Most of the homes still without power are in the Highlands, while some communities in Argyll and Bute are also waiting to be reconnected.

About 2,500 homes in the Republic of Ireland and 100 in Northern Ireland were also without power on Sunday night.

The Met Office forecast that Monday will be wet and windy for western Scotland though there are no weather warnings in place.

Storm Amy brought “extremely damaging” winds when it began to hit Ireland and the UK on Friday, with gusts of almost 100mph recorded in some exposed coastal areas.

Nik Wheeler, SSEN’s head of customer operations for the north of Scotland, said on Sunday evening: “With Storm Amy’s damaging and sustained winds finally subsiding, our huge reconnection operation is progressing well, although access challenges due to storm debris and fallen trees remain a concern.

“There are even more engineers out on the network today than yesterday, thanks to the arrival of dozens more teams from our fellow network operators and contract partners; they’ve come here from all over the country, and we’re grateful for their help.

“We appreciate that it’s taking some time to identify, access and fix all the damage, due to this storm’s rare intensity and prolonged nature. We don’t take our customers’ patience and understanding for granted, and I want to thank them for bearing with us while we reconnect them as safely and quickly as we can.

“I’d encourage people to take advantage of the hot meal provision we’re organising if they’re able, and to familiarise themselves with the compensation and reimbursement they may be entitled to.”

Mark Ilderton, ScotRail service delivery director, said earlier: “We’re very pleased that the vast majority of services are now operating. Storm Amy was even more severe than forecast, with winds of up to 100 miles per hour in some parts of Scotland.

“This led to very challenging conditions for the rail network, and working with Network Rail, we took the responsible decision to withdraw train services in many parts of the country where weather conditions were most severe.

“We understand the effect this has on customers, but this was a necessary step to ensure the safety of passengers and staff, which is always our first priority.

“Our colleagues at Network Rail Scotland worked around the clock to carry out infrastructure checks and repairs to reopen the railway.

“We would like to thank customers for their patience and understanding while the clear-up operation took place and we are pleased that in most parts of the country the rail network is back and open for business.”

Weather warnings were in place across much of the country on Friday and Saturday, and in northern Scotland until midday on Sunday, as the storm swept over the country.

Ross Moran, route director at Network Rail Scotland, said: “Storm Amy really left its mark on Scotland’s railway. With more than 420 incidents, including fallen trees and debris across the tracks, the scale of the recovery effort has been immense.”