Stormy weather has been battering Tayside and Fife on Friday after conditions took a turn for the worse.
Forecasters say parts of Scotland will be hit by “unseasonably strong” winds, with gusts of up to 75mph expected in the Highlands and Western Isles.
Locally there are restrictions and warnings on the Tay Road, Forth Road and Friarton bridges due to the stormy weather.
And the extremely strong winds have brought down a large tree at Dundee’s Magdalen Green.
It is said to have come down at the north end of the popular park, close to the railway line.
The Tay Road Bridge is closed to all vehicles except single-decker buses and cars. The walkway is also shut.
High winds – BRIDGE OPEN TO CARS AND SINGLE DECKER BUSES ONLY – 30 mph speed restriction in place. CENTRAL WALKWAY CLOSED. (12:30 22/05/2020)
— Tay Road Bridge (@tay_road_bridge) May 22, 2020
The Forth Road Bridge has also been closed to high-sided vehicles with a 40mph speed limit put in place.
The same speed restrictions are in place on the Queensferry Crossing.
And drivers have been told to exercise caution on the Friarton Bridge near Perth due to high winds.
Well, I guess boasting about the Scottish weather is tempting fate. A bit on the windy side today! #dundee pic.twitter.com/YBmRzjAyRJ
— Aliki Varvogli (@AlikiVarvogli) May 22, 2020
A Met Office yellow warning for wind is in place for much of the Highlands and Western Isles until 5am on Saturday.
A #wind warning has been issued for parts of northwest Scotland, in force from 15:00 today until 05:00 tomorrow. Gusts of 60-65 mph are expected with the possibility of a few gusts of up to 75 mph in exposed parts of Barra, North and South Uist. Details at https://t.co/DqMrivfCKF pic.twitter.com/leoExgizDn
— Met Office (@metoffice) May 22, 2020
It states: “A spell of unseasonably strong south-westerly winds will affect parts of north-west Scotland, particularly the Western Isles later today, easing during the early hours of Saturday.
“Gusts of 60mph-65 mph are expected, with the possibility of a few gusts of 70mph-75 mph in exposed parts of Barra, North and South Uist.”
Here's a quick look at the weather for Friday morning. pic.twitter.com/M8tdoyxAS8
— Met Office (@metoffice) May 21, 2020
And waves crashing on to the railway line near Saltcoats in Ayrshire led to train disruption.
ScotRail tweeted: “There’s high waves crashing on to the railway at Saltcoats, meaning that we can’t run trains through the area.
“Our Glasgow Central – Largs and Ardrossan Harbour services will only run between Glasgow Central and Kilwinning in both directions.”
NEW: There's high waves crashing on to the railway at #Saltcoats, meaning that we can't run trains through the area.
Our Glasgow Central – Largs & Ardrossan Harbour services will only run between Glasgow Central & Kilwinning in both directions. ^Angus pic.twitter.com/3Xb1W7Rk8c
— ScotRail (@ScotRail) May 22, 2020
It comes after weeks of glorious weather across Scotland during the lockdown – with temperatures soaring at the start of this week.
Wednesday was the hottest day of the year so far with a high of 28.2C reached at Santon Downham in England. A Scottish high of 24.1C was recorded at Kinlochewe.
