More than 90,000 properties remained without electricity on Sunday evening after Storm Boelo lashed the UK with wind speeds reaching 85mph in Machrihanish in Argyll and Bute, 84mph in Stornoway in the Outer Hebrides, and 84mph in Capel Curig in North Wales, while the island of Tiree in the Inner Hebrides experienced 82mph winds.
Falling Trees Kill Two Drivers in London and Scotland
The severe weather claimed two lives on Sunday as high winds tore down trees across the country. In north London, a man in his 20s died when a falling tree crushed the car he was driving on Dollis Road in Finchley around 12:40 GMT. Metropolitan Police and emergency services responded to the scene, where the driver was pronounced dead according to the Metropolitan Police.
This is a deeply tragic incident and our thoughts are with the loved ones of the young man who lost his life.
Chief Inspector Guy Ellwood, North West Command Unit
In Dumfries and Galloway at Mid Kelton near Castle Douglas, a 60-year-old man lost his life earlier that day on a minor road. Police Scotland confirmed that emergency services arrived at the scene around 10:30am after a falling tree struck the man, pronouncing him dead at the scene. In a separate incident on Poplar Avenue, near the footbridge known locally as the Bouncy Bridge in Aberfeldy, Perthshire, emergency services were called at around 12:50pm after two women were injured by another falling tree, with both individuals taken to a hospital for treatment.
Storms Leave Hundreds of Thousands Without Power Across Britain
The Energy Networks Association reported that more than 90,000 properties remained without power as of 19:00 GMT on Sunday, following earlier totals showing that engineers had restored power to 344,900 customers while 82,600 remained disconnected on Sunday morning.
The system’s destructive impact followed the earlier arrival of Storm Austen on Friday. Combined, the two storms left 838,700 properties across the country facing power cuts over the weekend. Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks noted that more than 24,000 customers in northern Scotland alone were still waiting for electricity restoration by Sunday morning, even after engineers had already reconnected more than 19,500 properties, with Argyll, the west Highlands, Skye and the Western Isles among the areas worst affected.
Floods and Gale Warnings Disrupt Rail and Air Services
Heavy downpours turned streets into rivers, particularly along the Clyde coast in Scotland, alongside significant rainfall totals in the Scottish Highlands peaking at the Cluanie Inn, which received 130mm of rain.
The Met Office maintained amber wind warnings across Scotland and parts of northern England through 21:00 GMT on Sunday, while yellow warnings covered parts of northern Wales, the Midlands, and northern England. Forecasters advised residents to stay indoors as much as possible and to avoid walking or sheltering near buildings and trees. Network Rail published photographs showing a trampoline underneath a train alongside a shed near the tracks, issuing a warning to residents living close to railway lines to properly secure garden items, while cross-country rail networks experienced delays, select flights serving Belfast, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Dublin terminals were grounded, and marine crossings suffered disruptions.
A 60-year-old man has died after being hit by a tree in Storm Boelo. The accident happened on a minor road near Castle Douglas in Dumfries and Galloway at around 10.30am.🔗: https://t.co/ygEcznDkzR pic.twitter.com/JHenUDi3rO