Power restored to all homes almost a week after Storm Amy swept in

The last of 90,000 homes which lost power following Storm Amy have been reconnected almost a week after it swept in.

Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) said it was one of the most severe storms in recent memory and left power lines damaged in 750 locations.

A gust of at least 96mph was recorded on the island of Tiree during the storm, which left 90,000 properties without power after sweeping in on Friday.

SSEN, distribution network operator for the north of Scotland, said it assembled one of the largest storm-response operations in its history to carry out repairs, with around 1,000 engineers and tree cutters involved.

As of Tuesday afternoon, 1,400 homes remained without power and on Thursday the company said it has now reconnected all properties that lost electricity because of the “exceptional, damaging winds”.

Nik Wheeler, SSEN’s head of customer operations for the north of Scotland, said: “This storm has been one of the most severe in recent memory, but Amy’s challenge has been met by one of the largest emergency responses in our long history.

“I know some customers have faced a longer wait while we’ve systematically worked through the huge volume of network damage to reconnect them.

“With this work now done, I’d like to thank each and every person affected for their patience, understanding, and the kindness that’s been shown to our teams as they’ve worked in local communities.

“Our ability to mount such a huge response has been made possible by the hard work and dedication of everyone who works here, but also through the help and support of fellow network operators and our contract partners.

“Their teams travelled north in their hundreds to be deployed to all corners of the north of Scotland network.”

SSEN also thanked food providers and local businesses which have helped support their communities in recent days.

As part of SSEN’s support package, customers who were without power for more than 12 hours are entitled to £30 per person for every day without power, to cover the cost of food and drink. People are advised to keep hold of any receipts and claim costs back at ssen.co.uk/stormclaim.

In addition, people registered for SSEN priority services can claim “reasonable costs” for alternative accommodation if they were without power for more than 24 hours. Customers can claim this in the same way as food and drink.

Storm Amy also caused widespread disruption to the rail network over the weekend, with more than 420 incidents reported, including fallen trees and debris on the tracks.

On the roads many routes were blocked by fallen trees, while ferry services were also disrupted.

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.