Rail services across Scotland are cancelled as Storm Dudley brings gusts of up to 90mph

Trains and ferries stopped running across parts of Scotland today as Storm Dudley charged in from the Atlantic – with forecasters issuing a ‘danger to life’ warning from flying debris and motorists being urged to reconsider their journeys.   

ScotRail wound down almost all services from 4pm today amid fears of falling trees and blowing debris as Storm Dudley – the first of two storms to hit the UK this week –  reached winds speeds of more than 80mph.

Ferries have also been severely disrupted, with 20 of the 29 routes experiencing cancellations as the winds continue to batter the country.

Today Historic Scotland announced the early closure of eight of its sites, including Edinburgh, Stirling and Blackness castles, Glasgow Cathedral, and Melrose Abbey.

It came as the Met Office upgraded its ‘danger to life’ amber warning to cover the whole of England on Friday when Storm Eunice is expected to slam the country with blizzards and 100mph gales.   

Scotland’s Deputy First Minister John Swinney earlier warned the coming days will be ‘very challenging’ as a result of the two storms.

‘We expect another period of disruption this week, with storms Dudley and Eunice set to bring strong winds to Scotland,’ Mr Swinney said.

‘High winds may cause issues on roads and bridges, disruption to power supplies and danger from falling trees.

‘We would urge everyone to plan their journeys in advance, exercise caution on the roads, and follow the latest travel advice.’   

A ScotRail statement said: ‘We know the impact that the earlier withdrawal of services will have on customers but it’s a necessary step to ensure the safety of our staff and customers due to the severe weather.

‘The strength of the winds expected could damage infrastructure, blowing debris and trees on to tracks and damaging equipment such as overhead electric power lines and signals.

‘Network Rail will have additional engineers out across the network ready to react to problems and will check all affected lines for damage before reintroducing services as quickly as possible. Disruption on some lines is expected to continue until mid-morning on Thursday.’

Robert Morrison, ferry operator CalMac’s director of operations, said: ‘This will be the fourth week of extreme and unprecedented weather disruptions.

‘We shared last week that this is taking place when other factors are affecting our service – including technical faults, overhaul, and the continuing but lesser effects of Covid-19.

‘We know we cannot control every factor, but we want to stress to our customers again that we do understand how much you and the communities we serve rely on our services.

‘Ensuring ferries work as they should is our priority and we are working hard to ensure we limit the impact of this upcoming period of disruption as much as we can and protect the lifeline service we deliver.’          

It comes as London North Eastern Railway (LNER) told customers ‘Please do not travel on Friday 18 February’ as they warned of severe weather conditions across the UK brought by Storm Eunice.   

LNER said in a statement: ‘Our trains will be most impacted by the severe weather in the southern parts of our route (south of York/Leeds) and as a result we will be running a reduced service between London King’s Cross and York/Leeds. We expect these trains to be extremely busy and subject to short notice cancellations and alterations.’ 

They also said that currently the weather is not expected to affect the route north of York so services are still planned between York and Newcastle/Scotland, but asked customers to ‘please check before you travel as this is subject to change at short notice’.   

As of 5pm, Capel Curig in Wales had experienced gusts of up to 81mph, with Emley Moore in Yorkshire seeing 74mph winds, while Drumalbin in Scotland was hit by 71mph gales. 

Met Office forecaster Greg Dewhurst said: ‘We’ve seen Storm Dudley move in over the course of today with strong winds and heavy rain across northern parts of the country.

‘This is a complete contrast to areas in the south which have been rather mild and calm for the most part, the temperature even reaching 17C in some areas.

‘Exposed areas in Scotland, Northern Ireland, parts of Wales and northern England have seen wind speeds largely between 60 and 70mph but the worst affected areas have reached and even surpassed 80mph this afternoon.

‘In terms of rainfall the highest we’ve seen in the past 24 hours is 36.8mm in Low Laithes in west Yorkshire, which is a good amount for the time period.

‘These conditions are likely to continue into the evening before mellowing out in the early hours of Thursday.’

The intense winds could cause coastal flooding in the early hours of Friday morning, according to Katharine Smith, Environment Agency Flood Duty Manager.      

Wednesday’s amber warning is expected to last until midnight, with yellow warnings for wind as far south as Birmingham. Heavy showers are expected throughout the afternoon, with snow on high ground in the North.      

The first storm will be followed by a second, Storm Eunice, which is set to wreak havoc across the country from Friday with gusts of up to 100mph in south west England. An amber weather warning for Storm Dudley covers northern England and Scotland between 6pm today and 9am on Thursday – when ‘very strong and disruptive winds’ are due.   

Ireland is also facing high winds and heavy rain, as both sides of the Irish border brace for the impact of two storms. 

On Wednesday, another meeting was held by members of the Irish Government committee charged with planning and co-ordinating responses to extreme weather events.

In a statement, the crisis management team warned of ‘severe and potentially dangerous winds’ later this week when Storm Eunice hits the country.

Met Eireann has already upgraded its weather warning for a number of Irish counties, with a Status Orange wind warning issued for Clare, Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Waterford, Galway and Wexford.

The warning will take effect from 5am on Friday and will last until 11am, with 80mph gusts predicted in some areas.

A Status Yellow wind warning is in place until 11.30pm on Wednesday for the entirety of the Republic of Ireland, with gusts expected to reach 68mph.

In Northern Ireland, the Met Office has issued an amber wind warning for Co Antrim and Co Derry, with yellow warnings in place for the rest of the region.

That yellow warning will remain in place until 6am on Thursday, with the amber warning in place until midnight on Wednesday.       

Police in the Republic of Ireland have also warned people to exercise caution amid concerns about flooding in some areas. 

On Friday, heavy rain and ‘significant snowfall’ will hit the Midlands and north Wales – with two inches of snow and ‘blizzards’ expected in Scotland. 

A Met office warning reads: ‘Snow, heavy in places, is likely to develop on the northern side of Storm Eunice as it moves across the UK on Friday.’ 

In higher regions snow is expected to reach up to 11 inches with strong winds leading to poor visibility, blizzard conditions and snow drifts. 

The Met office warned flying debris could ‘result in a danger to life, with fallen trees, damage to buildings and homes, roofs blown off and power lines brought down’. 

Katharine Smith, Environment Agency Flood Duty Manager, said: ‘Strong winds could bring coastal flooding to parts of the west, southwest and south coast of England, as well as the tidal River Severn, in the early hours of Friday morning. This is due to Storm Eunice resulting in high waves and potential storm surge coinciding with the start of a period of spring tides.

‘Please remember to take extreme care on coastal paths and promenades. We urge people to stay safe on the coast and warn wave watchers against the unnecessary danger of taking ‘storm selfies’. Flooding of low-lying coastal roads is also possible and people should avoid driving through flood water as just 30cm of flowing water is enough to move your car.’

Met Office spokeswoman Nicola Maxey said: ‘We are looking at particularly stormy period right now, with two named storms coming through one after the other.

‘This sort of weather set-up is typical for the UK in the winter, with low pressure coming in from the west, driven by the jet stream.’

She said the forecast after Storm Eunice continued to look unsettled with the potential for more wet and windy conditions over the weekend and the start of next week.

Met Office Chief Meteorologist Frank Saunders said: ‘An active jet stream is helping to drive low-pressure systems across the country, with both storms set to cause some disruption and National Severe Weather Warnings have been issued.

‘Significant disruption is possible from both Storm Dudley and Storm Eunice with strong winds one of the main themes of the current forecast. The most impactful winds from Dudley will be in the north on Wednesday afternoon, as shown in the amber warning area. 

‘Storm Eunice is expected to track eastwards from early on Friday, bringing the most significant winds to the central and southern areas of the UK, with some gusts possible in excess of 95mph in exposed coastal areas.’

ScotRail said its services on the Far North, Kyle of Lochalsh, and Aberdeen-Inverness lines would continue to run on Wednesday afternoon, and some cross-border services will still operate but at reduced speeds.

Liam Sumpter, Network Rail route director for Scotland, said the storm had the potential to cause ‘significant disruption’ to infrastructure. He said it could blow trees onto tracks and damage equipment. 

Deputy First Minister John Swinney said the weather could cause disruption to travel and power supplies as well as danger from falling trees. 

Following a meeting of the Scottish Government’s Resilience Room, the Deputy First Minister said they would continue to monitor the situation as the storms approach.

On Twitter, Mr Swinney added: ‘Resilience meeting @scotgov just completed. The next few days will be very challenging with £StormDudley.

‘Please see @ScotRail plans and follow advice there is a high risk of disruption to travel. Please #StaySafe.’ 

There have been four named storms so far this season, with the most recent being storms Malik and Corrie at the end of January. 

Gusts from Malik reached 82mph in Northumberland and 72mph in the Derbyshire Peak District.

Meanwhile, during Storm Corrie, 92mph gusts were recorded at Stornoway, in the Outer Hebrides.   

During the storms, between January 29 and 31, two people were killed by falling trees in Staffordshire and Aberdeen, while tens of thousands of homes were left without power.

In 2020, Storm Ciara brought gusts of up to 70mph to the west coast of Scotland.

And in 2019 Storm Atiyah brought 70mph winds across the country along with power cuts and transport delays.

This came just months after Storm Hannah brought gusts of up 69mph in west Wales.

Issuing a warning to motorists yesterday, National Highways head of road safety Jeremy Phillips said: ‘We’re encouraging drivers to check the latest weather and travel conditions before setting off on journeys and consider if their journey is necessary and can be delayed until conditions improve.

‘If you do intend to travel, then plan your journey and take extra care, allowing more time for your journey. 

‘In high winds, there’s a particular risk to lorries, caravans and motorbikes so we’d advise drivers of these vehicles to slow down.

‘Drivers of other vehicles should be aware of sudden gusts of wind which can affect handling and braking, and give high-sided vehicles, caravans, and motorbikes plenty of space. 

‘In the event of persistent high winds we may need to close bridges to traffic for a period, so please be alert for warnings of closures and follow signed diversion routes.’  

 Met Office chief meteorologist Paul Gundersen said: ‘An active jet stream is driving low-pressure systems across the country, both of which are likely to cause some disruption and national severe weather warnings have been issued.’ 

Storm Dudley is set to be accompanied by heavy rain at times as it crosses the country today and into Thursday.

The strongest winds, of 80mph to 90mph, are expected on ‘exposed coasts and hills’, with gusts of 60mph to 70mph elsewhere.

At the weekend, Energy distributor Northern Powergrid apologised to dozens of customers who were issued them with compensation cheques for £2.3trillion by mistake, after delays to reconnect their power supplies in the wake of November’s Storm Arwen. 

The RNLI warned adverse weather conditions could make seas ‘treacherous’, urging people to take extra care in coastal areas. 

‘The expected storms could make our seas treacherous, increasing the risk for those visiting the coast around the UK and Ireland,’ RNLI national water safety partner, Samantha Hughes, said.

‘In a normal year, around 150 people lose their lives at the coast and we know that more than half of those never intended to be in the water.

‘So, whether you are walking, running or cycling at the coast, please be extra responsible and avoid taking unnecessary risk or entering the water.

‘In particular, we ask people to stay well back from stormy, wintery seas and cliff edges, check tide times before you go, take a phone with you, and call 999 or 112 and ask for the Coastguard if you or someone else is in trouble.’

Meanwhile, the Woodland Trust Scotland urged people to stay away from wooded areas during the high winds.

‘Please do not enter woodland when winds are high and be cautious when entering woodland after a storm,’ said spokesman, George Anderson.

He added: ‘Even fully toppled trees are best avoided when newly felled as they are often not completely settled and still have the potential to move or tip.

‘We know a felled tree can be fascinating, especially to children, but it is not safe to clamber about on or under them.

‘Woodland Trust Scotland manages 60 sites across the country and, in the aftermath of any storm, public safety is our first concern.

‘Where paths are blocked, we will have them cleared as quickly as possible but, in the meantime, we call on the public to heed all path diversions and safety notices on sites.’