Storm Amy: Busy Glasgow road closed as building collapses onto car as winds hit 100mph
The disruption caused by Storm Amy was expected to extend into Saturday
A busy city centre road was closed after a building collapsed on to a nearby car amid strong winds and heavy rain driven by Storm Amy.
Glasgow City Council said the Broomielaw was closed to all traffic in both directions between York Street and Oswald Street on Friday evening. Police had urged drivers to avoid the area.
It comes as Storm Amy, the first named storm of the season, battered Scotland. Scots were confronted by widespread travel disruption, with winds reaching up to 100mph in the worst-hit areas.
Power cuts were reported in the Highlands, where an amber alert has been issued by the Met Office.
READ MORE: Storm Amy Scotland LIVE: Updates of travel disruption and cancellations as 100mph winds hit Scotland
The SSEN website showed 68 unplanned power cuts had been logged in Scotland, largely on the country’s west coast, as of 7pm on Friday.
Several flights, rail and ferry services were cancelled. The Scottish Government urged people to avoid travelling amid the “dangerous conditions” caused by the storm.
An amber alert for wind is due to remain in force in the country’s north until 9pm on Saturday. Yellow weather warnings were in place for much of Scotland until midnight, leading into Sunday.
Speed restrictions were introduced on all ScotRail services from 6pm until the end of service on Friday, meaning all rail passengers were warned to expect delays.
Scotrail announced soon after 7pm that all trains to and from Glasgow Central had been suspended, alongside all North Clyde services.
Flooding on the line at Bowling meant trains between Glasgow and Dumbarton, Helensburgh and Balloch were unable to pass through the area.
Both the Forth and Tay road bridges were shut on Friday night to all traffic due to high winds. The Kincardine Bridge, Clackmannanshire Bridge, and the A1 Tyne Bridge in East Lothian were also shut for high-sided vehicles.
The A83 at Strone Point, three miles east of Inverary, was closed in both directions due to a fallen tree.
Tram services were suspended between Newhaven and Princes Street due to a hazard at Saint Andrew Square from soon after 7pm.
Ferry sailings from the west of Scotland were on “high alert” for disruption into the weekend, as operator CalMac cancelled a number of services on Friday.
Major events were also cancelled amid the onslaught from Storm Amy.
Organisers of The Enchanted Forest in Pitlochry called off Friday night’s show due to public safety.
A statement from organisers read: “We are sorry for any inconvenience caused to visitors by this decision, but the safety of all our visitors and staff is of the utmost importance.”
Edinburgh Leisure cancelled all school sports on their facilities and pitches on Saturday.
The junior and mini Great Scottish Run in Glasgow on Saturday were also cancelled, with organisers saying the strong winds and rain would create a risk of debris and also affect medical facilities on-site for the event.
The children's runs, including a 2.5km junior race, a toddler dash and a one mile mini run for under nines, had been due to take place on Saturday morning. Organisers said the 10k race and half marathon for adults were still due to take place on Sunday.
The disruption came as a man was killed in a weather-related incident and about 234,000 properties were without power across the island of Ireland on Friday evening.
About 50,000 properties were without power in Northern Ireland and NIE Networks said there had been a “significant level of damage to the electricity networks” in the region.
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