Hunker down: 80mph winds expected in parts of the country as latest storm sweeps in

Scots were warned to hunker down yesterday with more gales about to batter parts of the country.

Much of weather-beaten Scotland should be spared another pounding today after yet another anticipated storm began veering away to the south but the Ayrshire and Galloway coasts are still expected to be hit by 80mph gales as another front sweeps in from the Atlantic.

Power company Scottish and Southern Energy reconnected 120,000 homes in England which had been blacked out by Storm Eunice on Friday when at least four people died.

The energy firm said it still had almost 60,000 customers off-grid yesterday.

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Yesterday afternoon, UK Energy Minister Kwasi Kwarteng said 190,000 customers still had no power while 1.2 million had electricity restored.

While Scotland missed the gales that howled through the south-east of England on Friday, Storm Eunice delivered heavy snow across swathes of the Highlands and north-east.

At Moy, around seven miles south of Inverness, Neil Ross was using a snow blower to make short work of clearing his driveway.

He said: “This is the best thing that I have ever bought.  We get a lot of snow here and I would be here all day trying to clear the snow by hand.”

Winds are expected to pick up in the south-west from noon today with up to 70mph expected on exposed coasts and hills.

During an intense spell expected early tomorrow, highs of 80mph are possible in some locations.

The Met Office says there is a small chance of “danger to life” from tiles ripped off roofs, or high waves around the coasts.

Forecaster Craig Snell said: “We have seen the worst of the winds track further south than we were anticipating on Friday.

“Scotland has effectively dodged a bullet because it is a much smaller area of the country that is now in the warning zone.

“We’re not out of the woods yet but after a stormy few days, Monday should be a drier and brighter day for most.”

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The Met Office has issued yellow warnings for wind covering most of the UK today and tomorrow. Meanwhile, Glencoe is at high risk of avalanches, the first time the threat level has been reached this winter, and hikers and winter sports enthusiasts have been urged to take care on the hills.

Eunice was the UK’s fifth named storm of the winter and was the second in a matter of days to hit after parts of Scotland, northern England and Northern Ireland endured gusts of up to 90mph and heavy rain during Storm Dudley.

Sections of railway were being assessed for damage from Dudley when snow fell overnight on Thursday and into Friday, also impacting the roads network. Yesterday, airports said they were mostly back to normal.