Parts of Scotland have been pummelled by high winds and snow on Friday as Storm Eunice sweeps across the country.
A Met Office yellow weather warning is in place for most Scotland until 9am on Saturday.
STV NewsTraffic Scotland warned drivers of potential disruption on the roads due to the icy conditions.
Those driving vehicles that may be vulnerable to being blown over in conditions of high wind along exposed routes have also been urged to use additional caution and to avoid areas of exposure.
Deputy first minister John Swinney has told Scots to follow the weather warnings in place and to only travel if it is safe to do so.
He has said that the Scottish Government’s resilience committee will continue to monitor the situation.
ScotRail has indicated that they do not expect Storm Eunice to have the same impact as Storm Dudley, which caused services to be cancelled, but travellers have been asked to check their journey before setting out.
STV NewsTraffic Scotland said that there was heavy snow across the North East of Scotland, particularly on the A90, A956, AWPR and the A96.
Braemar, Glenshee, Cairn O’Mount and Cock Bridge were all closed due to the conditions on Friday morning.
Bus service, Scottish Citylink, said that all services, with some exceptions, in the central belt of Scotland were being held in stations and safe places.
P&O Ferries said that it was waiting confirmation regarding its 2pm and 5pm sailings from both ports at Cairnryan and Larne.
STV NewsHM Coastguard has issued a plea for people to stay away from the coast as Storm Eunice hits.
The plea comes following multiple reports of people at the waterline taking pictures of the waves, and even of families standing by the surf line with their children.
HM Coastguard tactical commander Ben Hambling said: “The reports we are receiving are absolutely terrifying. In these conditions all it takes is one wave.
“A dramatic photograph or selfie is not worth risking your life for and those who are going to the coast to take pictures are also putting our teams at risk.
“We are urging people in the strongest possible terms to stay away from the coast.”
If you do get into trouble or believe anybody to be in difficulty at the coast or at sea, please call 999 and ask for the Coastguard.
A number of schools in Aberdeenshire were closed early due to heavy snow and power cuts affecting buildings.
Meanwhile, ScotRail said that there had not been any disruption caused to their services by the weather.
A Glasgow to Heathrow flight was also captured by Big Jet TV struggling to land at the London airport on Friday due to the high winds.
One woman who was on the flight with her daughter and granddaughter told STV News: “[We were] heading to London to celebrate my granddaughter’s 18th birthday. [I’ve] got to say the pilot was excellent. [It was] a bit scary though.”
A man in Co Wexford, Ireland, was killed by a falling free, while a member of the public suffered “serious injuries” after being struck by debris from a roof in Henley-on-Thames.
Two men are also in hospital after being injured in similar, separate incidents in south London.
Insight Sean Batty
STV meteorologist Sean Batty explained that Storm Eunice will bring blizzard-like conditions.
He said: “The weather front that we were predicting would come in now looks as if it’s going to sort of pivot and stall somewhere across central and eastern Scotland, particularly so, parts of Stirlingshire and Perthshire, and inland parts of Angus.
“We’ll also see that heavy snow moving into Aberdeenshire as well. So, dreadful conditions, and not just that, we’ve also got a fairly strong wind developing in some areas too.
“That’s going to give us drifting and blizzard-like conditions throughout the day.
“So, take care out there, but it should start to ease later on this afternoon.”
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