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| Scotland weather: Christmas Eve high winds expected | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The Met Office has upgraded its warnings for high winds across large areas of northern and western Scotland during Christmas Eve. | The Met Office has upgraded its warnings for high winds across large areas of northern and western Scotland during Christmas Eve. |
| Amber "be prepared" weather warnings now cover the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the north west Highlands, Argyll and Bute, Orkney and Shetland. | Amber "be prepared" weather warnings now cover the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the north west Highlands, Argyll and Bute, Orkney and Shetland. |
| The warnings are now due to come into force at 06:00. | The warnings are now due to come into force at 06:00. |
| The rest of the country is covered by less serious yellow "be aware" warnings. | |
| The public has been told to prepare for "significant" travel disruption and the Met Office said power cuts were also possible. | The public has been told to prepare for "significant" travel disruption and the Met Office said power cuts were also possible. |
| P and O Ferries has suspended sailings between the County Antrim port of Larne and Cairnryan in Dumfries and Galloway until further notice. | |
| A spokesman said it was unlikely that sailings would resume before lunchtime on Tuesday. | |
| Forecasters said widespread gales were likely across the country, with gusts of 65mph to 75mph in many areas. | Forecasters said widespread gales were likely across the country, with gusts of 65mph to 75mph in many areas. |
| But storm-force gusts of 80mph to 90mph are also possible, particularly towards the north west of the country later in the day, where there will also be frequent wintry showers. | |
| The Met Office amber warning for the period 06:00 to 23:59 on 24 December said: "A deep depression tracking north, to the west of Scotland, will bring a period of storm-force winds with gusts 80mph to 90mph later on Tuesday, to affect western Scotland and then into the Northern Isles. | The Met Office amber warning for the period 06:00 to 23:59 on 24 December said: "A deep depression tracking north, to the west of Scotland, will bring a period of storm-force winds with gusts 80mph to 90mph later on Tuesday, to affect western Scotland and then into the Northern Isles. |
| "The public should be prepared for disruption, particularly to travel, as well as interruption to power supplies." | "The public should be prepared for disruption, particularly to travel, as well as interruption to power supplies." |
| The Scottish Environment Protection Agency has a number of flood warnings in place in Tayside, as well as several lesser flood alerts in central Scotland, Dumfries and Galloway and the Borders. | The Scottish Environment Protection Agency has a number of flood warnings in place in Tayside, as well as several lesser flood alerts in central Scotland, Dumfries and Galloway and the Borders. |
| BBC weather forecaster Christopher Blanchett said: "A winter storm approaches on Tuesday, meaning the whole of Scotland will see stormy conditions for Christmas Eve. | |
| "There will be widespread gales or severe gales from the south or south west. The worst affected areas will be the most exposed parts of our coastline and across the Islands and high ground." | |
| Rain and snow | |
| He said the Solway coast, the Rhins of Galloway and towards Kintyre would also be extremely windy through the morning. | |
| "There's a brief lull in the winds around midday for the west coast, before they ramp again by late afternoon with gusts of 80 to 90mph possible," he said. "These then transfer to the Northern Isles by Christmas Eve night and last until Christmas morning." | |
| He added that heavy rain and snow would also affect parts of the country. | |
| "The snow will affect all areas above 200m, so high routes to the north and south of the central belt will be affected," he said. "Expect severe conditions at times on roads like the A9 and the A82." | |
| Stein Connelly, operator manager for Traffic Scotland, urged those travelling for the festive season to take the weather conditions into account when planning their journeys. | Stein Connelly, operator manager for Traffic Scotland, urged those travelling for the festive season to take the weather conditions into account when planning their journeys. |
| He added: "The Met Office is telling us that the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the north west Highlands and the Northern Isles will be particularly badly affected by the winds and we would remind people that bridges in these areas may have to close at some points during the day. | He added: "The Met Office is telling us that the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the north west Highlands and the Northern Isles will be particularly badly affected by the winds and we would remind people that bridges in these areas may have to close at some points during the day. |
| "The rest of the country will experience some strong winds and this could lead to some isolated problems on the roads. | "The rest of the country will experience some strong winds and this could lead to some isolated problems on the roads. |
| "The message, as always, is to make sure you have as much information as possible before starting your journey and to consider when you travel." | "The message, as always, is to make sure you have as much information as possible before starting your journey and to consider when you travel." |
| Power supplies | |
| Ferry operator CalMac said anyone intending to travel on its services over the holiday period should be as flexible as possible when planning their journeys. | Ferry operator CalMac said anyone intending to travel on its services over the holiday period should be as flexible as possible when planning their journeys. |
| A spokesman said: "We have been advised that there will be prolonged periods of severe weather hitting Scotland over the next couple of weeks including the Christmas and New Year holiday period. As a result our services may experience cancellations and/or disruptions. | A spokesman said: "We have been advised that there will be prolonged periods of severe weather hitting Scotland over the next couple of weeks including the Christmas and New Year holiday period. As a result our services may experience cancellations and/or disruptions. |
| "Due to the impact of this weather it is likely that our timetables and sailings will change at very short notice as we endeavour to maintain lifeline services. | "Due to the impact of this weather it is likely that our timetables and sailings will change at very short notice as we endeavour to maintain lifeline services. |
| "We would therefore ask customers to check the website for the latest information and be prepared to be flexible if at all possible. This may mean delays but also the possibility of some sailings being earlier than timetabled. | "We would therefore ask customers to check the website for the latest information and be prepared to be flexible if at all possible. This may mean delays but also the possibility of some sailings being earlier than timetabled. |
| "We fully appreciate that these disruptions will be inconvenient but the safety of passengers, crew and ships is our number one priority." | "We fully appreciate that these disruptions will be inconvenient but the safety of passengers, crew and ships is our number one priority." |
| Power company Scottish Hydro said hundreds of engineers and support staff will be working in depots and offices across the network and will respond to any damages to the electricity network. | Power company Scottish Hydro said hundreds of engineers and support staff will be working in depots and offices across the network and will respond to any damages to the electricity network. |
| Extra call handlers will also be working to give customers advice and to talk to anyone who may lose their electricity supply, it said. | Extra call handlers will also be working to give customers advice and to talk to anyone who may lose their electricity supply, it said. |