Huge storm damage: A Ford Ka, pictured here today, is completely destroyed as the gable end of a block of flats was blown off in high windsAround 70,000 homes were left without power and five walkers were missing today after Britain was battered by gales of up to 165mph, leaving a trail of destruction across the country.
As engineers worked to restore electricity, the Scottish Government warned that some people will have to wait until the weekend until the supply is restored.
A search was underway for five men who were hillwalking in the Cairngorms which was hit by winds of 165mph at the height of the storms yesterday. The men have not been seen since Wednesday.
Damage: The Ford Ka was destroyed when the bricks were blown out of the roof of this block of flatsGrampian Police are working with search and rescue teams to track down the men, from the Aberdeen area. A spokesman said: 'The walkers are well-equipped but, given the weather we have experienced in the last couple of days, we are concerned as to their whereabouts.'
A huge clean-up operation is underway across Scotland after strong winds left a trail of destruction across the country. Grampian Fire and Rescue Service had around 75 storm call-outs last night.
In one spectacular incident yesterday a 300ft wind turbine exploded in flames as it was buffeted by the high winds.
Another wind turbine was completely blown down on Wednesday, raising questions about whether wind farms were simply unable to cope with the weather.
A £2million, 100metre-tall wind turbine caught fire in hurricane-force winds at Ardrossan, North Ayrshire, Scotland, during severe weatherScottishPower said today that it had reconnected more than 18,000 customers who had lost power because of over 100 individual faults. Scottish Hyrdo said around 50,000 of their customers had been left without electricity.
The appalling conditions brought huge areas of the country to a standstill as lorries were blown over, roads and bridges closed, and ferries cancelled.
Today temperatures are expected to plummet with blizzards, snowdrifts and black ice expected in the north, and continuing wind and rain in the south.
However, forecasters expected some respite, with the worst of the winds confined to north-east Scotland and the Shetland Isles.
The flaming £2million wind turbine was in Ardrossan, North Ayrshire, Scotland. Witnesses said its blades were locked at the time, because the National Grid would be unable to cope with a sudden power surge.
Gritter army: A team of workers on quad bikes bought by Southend Council to spread grit in snow and ice. The three bikes feature large ploughs on the front and containers on the back which can carry up to 260kg of grit - enough to cover 15 miles of road
Collapse: A wind turbine lies on its side after crashing to the ground on Wednesday afternoon at Coldingham in Lothian and Borders
Rescue: A lorry tumbled over onto it's side on the southbound M9 motorway near Stirling yesterday
Strong gusts: An easyJet plane is blown around in the wind as it lands at Edinburgh airport yesterday evening
Storm: Waves batter the coastline at Helensburgh, Scotland, as the country is hit by hurricane force windsPhotographer Stuart McMahon, who took the incredible image, said: ‘The centre of the turbine caught fire first and the flames spread to the covering of the blades.
‘There was burning debris being swept off in the wind and across the fields. These are huge structures and to see one on fire was a spectacular sight.’
The turbine knocked over by high winds near Coldingham in the Borders caused several homes to be evacuated and a road to be closed.
Although ScottishPower has not blamed the weather for its collapse, Lothian and Borders Police said the turbine ‘suffered brake system failure and had been freewheeling’ in 50mph winds.
Locals brave the weather at Saltcoats, Ayrshire as the area is blasted by 90mph winds
A battering: High waves hit the coastline at Helensburgh, Scotland, as the country is hit by hurricane force windsScottish and Southern Energy refused to disclose how many of its turbines were affected.
A spokesman for National Grid said: ‘At lunchtime, 1,500MW of electricity that was expected to be generated by wind farms in Scotland wasn’t being produced, although we can’t tell if that’s all down to the high winds or wind farms just deciding not to generate.
‘That 1,500MW is enough to supply about one million homes.’
Overturned: Two lorries lay on their side after being blown over on the A83 at Loch Restil, just beyond The Rest & Be Thankful
Gale forced: A HGV is blown over in strong winds onto the central reservation on the A66 on the border between Cumbria and County Durham
Blown away: A woman struggles to hold on to her umbrella as she walks in near hurricane force winds on the hills near Keswick, Cumbria
Storm damage: Laura Harrison and her colleague Martin Murphy pictured outside their shop in Musselburgh, East Lothian yesterday as storms ripped off their sign while a Co-op in Dumbarton also had its sign blown off
Aerial image: Britain is covered in cloud as a storm sweeps across Scotland. This satellite image comes from Dundee University 
High winds: The coast at Saltcoats in Ayrshire, Scotland, is battered by seawater as the coast is hit by gusts of up to 90mph
Waves crash against the promenade in Largs as Scotland was hit by winds in excess of 100mph - even on lower ground
Breakdown: A parcel delivery van is swamped by floodwater near Rosthwaite, in Borrowdale, CumbriaScotland and northern England suffered the most. The strongest winds of 165mph were in the Scottish Highlands, while speeds of up to 107mph were recorded in the Pennines, 71mph in Glasgow, and 67mph in Manchester.
Hundreds of schools were closed, as were many roads.
A 60-year-old lorry driver had a lucky escape after his vehicle was blown over on to the central reservation of the A66 between Cumbria and County Durham.
The man from Millom, Cumbria, walked away from the incident without any injuries.
Two people were rescued from a car trapped in rising water near Aysgarth, North Yorkshire, by the RAF and airlifted to hospital with suspected hypothermia.
Gales: Children get sprayed by rough waves at Cardswell Bay, Gourock, in western Scotland as Britain is hit by wind speeds of 151mph - thought to be the highest since 1997
Storm damage: A roof is torn off a house in Saltcoats, Ayrshire, today as high winds battered Scotland
Flooding: A road in Helensburgh, Scotland, is underwater as Scotland is today hit by hurricane-force windsElsewhere in the county, a bridge collapsed and others were thought to be under threat.
A spokesman for North Yorkshire Police said: ‘So far one bridge at Grinton has collapsed and police have concerns for a bridge at Low Witter Farm on the B6270.’
A search was being carried out near the swing bridge at Reeth after a torchlight was seen close to the river in case anyone was in danger.
In Cumbria, the Environment Agency has issued flood alerts on 12 rivers and lakes.
There was also a flood warning was also issued on the River Greta at Keswick.
Cumbria Police said they received a number of calls yesterday morning from motorists who had become stuck in flood water in the south of the county.
Blustery: A man walks his dog along the promenade in Largs today as the coastline takes a battering
Festive preparations: This 30ft Santa on the roof of a pub in Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, has been left shaking in the wind. Right: A woman walks with her dog in sand whipped up by high winds in Seaburn, Tyne and Wear
Fierce winds: Two walkers in Southsea, Hampshire, are today hit by sea spray as they walk along the coast. Right, in Blackpool rough seas batter the famous beach front today as Britain is hit by high windsAnd the Low Wood Bay Hotel on the edge of Windermere was flooded, forcing staff to pump water out of the bar area and other public rooms.
A stricken trawler had to be rescued by lifeboat crews off the coast of Whitehaven, Cumbria.
Wales was also battered with strong winds, with one house in Wrexham having the chimney blown off its roof.
Last night the Met Office issued its strongest warning – a red alert – for winds in Scotland, meaning that ‘widespread structural damage’ was likely with the risk of roofs being blown off, mobile homes overturned and power lines brought down.
source: dailymail
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