STV NewsHomes could be left without power until Tuesday as Scotland braces for a second storm this weekend.
The First Minister said the impact of Storm Corrie is “likely to be significant” in the wake of fatal Storm Malik which battered the country on Saturday.
Nicola Sturgeon issued the warning after a 60-year-old woman in Aberdeen and a nine-year-old boy in Staffordshire were killed by falling trees.
STV NewsIt is feared Storm Corrie could bring greater disruption, with gusts of up to 90mph expected in the north east.
ScotRail has cancelled all services across the country from 6pm on Sunday as a safety precaution.
Sturgeon said: “Just chaired another @scotgov resilience meeting on weather. There are amber/yellow @metoffice warnings in place for all of Scotland as Storm #Corrie sets in – please heed the warnings and take care.
“Impacts from the storm are likely to be significant tonight and into tomorrow.
“Work to repair the damage from Storm Malik continues.
“Tens of thousands have had power reconnected already – however, many will remain off supply again tonight and some, especially in north east, could be off into Tuesday. Welfare arrangements are in place.
“Given the severity of the winds expected tonight, rail services are stopping at 6pm in the interests of safety.
“However, as far as possible, it is hoped that services will return to normal in the morning.
“My thanks to everyone across the country who is working hard and in difficult conditions to repair the impact of the severe weather and support those affected by it.”
The Scottish Government said a total of 98,000 households lost power as a result of Storm Malik.
All but 7500 are expected to be reconnected on Sunday night, however, for the remainder – mainly in Aberdeenshire – outages could last until Tuesday.
Deputy First Minister John Swinney said: “Storm Malik caused significant damage on Saturday and Storm Corrie threatens to be similarly disruptive tonight.
“I urge everyone to heed the warnings, don’t travel unless you have to and stay safe. Remember, a yellow warning does mean there are likely to be dangers.
STV News“The power companies have drafted in a large number of additional engineers and are making significant inroads into reconnecting customers.
“However, we need to be aware that the arrival of Storm Corrie could hamper these efforts and add further problems.
“For those who will unfortunately not have power tonight, support with alternative accommodation is available to anyone who needs it.
“Special arrangements remain in place for vulnerable customers and local resilience partnerships continue to work with councils to provide welfare support.
“Rail services have been significantly impacted this weekend and will halt overnight. Whilst our expectation is that services will resume as soon as possible on Monday, people should check the ScotRail and Traffic Scotland channels for travel updates before leaving home.
“Safety is our number one priority. Ministers are being kept updated and will take further action as necessary. In the meantime I thank all those who are working in difficult conditions to keep people safe and maintain our lifeline services.”
STV NewsScottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) said Storm Malik caused “significant damage” to its network and had left around 18,000 customers without supply as of 11am on Sunday.
SSEN warned the double blow of storms Malik and Corrie could mean that some customers, particularly those in rural Aberdeenshire, may have to wait until early next week before supply problems are fixed.
Richard Gough, of SSEN, said that due to the extent of damage caused by Storm Malik, “coupled with the expected impact of Storm Corrie, we expect the full restoration of customer supplies from both storms to extend into the early part of next week”.
He added: “We are therefore reminding all customers who remain off supply that they may want to consider making alternative arrangements, where possible.”
The Met Office, which warned that “damaging gusts of wind are possible later today and overnight into Monday morning”, said Storm Corrie is set to bring gusts of up to 90mph in exposed coastal locations in northern Scotland, and 70-80mph gusts in the north.
It is set to move eastwards across Scotland on Sunday and push across the North Sea in the early hours of Monday.
Amber and yellow weather warnings for wind across northern parts of Scotland from Sunday into Monday morning are in force.
They state that “flying debris is likely and could lead to injuries or danger to life”, while there may be some damage to trees and buildings, which could include tiles that have blown from roofs.
Ice warnings were also issued by the Met Office covering Grampian, Highlands and Eilean Siar, Strathclyde and Fife on Monday as wintry showers and falling temperatures after Storm Corrie may turn untreated surfaces icy.
It said: “In the wake of Storm Corrie, falling temperatures may allow a brief period of snow in a few areas, mainly on hills.
“Later in the night, clearer skies and wintry showers are expected, these most frequent for northwest and north Scotland, few and far between in eastern areas.
“These are likely to lead to ice forming on untreated surfaces, while strong northwesterly winds may lead to temporary blizzard conditions over high ground, with 1-2 cm of snow above 200m elevation and perhaps a few cm on the highest routes.”
Meanwhile, police, firefighters and the local council have evacuated people from their homes in Glasgow over fears high wind may damage a historic building.
STV NewsAn “exclusion zone” has been set up around Old Trinity College, in the Park Circus area of the city, and the surrounding area over worries that existing structural issues may be exacerbated by Storm Malik, which has seen winds of more than 100mph reported in parts of Scotland.
A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said residents can expect to be out of their homes for “considerably longer than 24 hours”, although he would not be drawn on how long.
A rest centre has been set up at the nearby Kelvin Hall to help those who have been affected.
The council spokesman said: “There’s three towers on the building… the condition of that had deteriorated to the point where the owner’s contractors and our building standards team thought immediate evacuation was necessary.
“As it stands, those residents who are needing support are directed to the rest centre at the Kelvin Hall.”
He added: “Residents are likely to be out for some time.”
When pressed on how long that could mean, the spokesman said it would be “considerably longer than 24 hours”.
It is understood the owners of the building were seeking to address cracks that already existed in the building’s towers before the storm hit.
A spokeswoman for Police Scotland said: “Around 12.55pm on Saturday 29 January 2022, police assistance was sought from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service to assist with traffic management at Lynedoch Street, Glasgow (near Park Circus).
“The Fire Service is currently dealing with an unsafe structure and officers are in attendance due to several roads being closed. A number of properties are also being evacuated.”
The fire service confirmed two appliances had been sent to the scene.
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