John Swinney has warned Scots not to travel ahead of Storm Éowyn. The First Minister sounded the alarm about the rare red weather warning at Holyrood.
He said: “The Met Office has this morning issued a very rare red weather warning for Storm Éowyn tomorrow.
“The warning covers parts of Dumfries and Galloway and of the Scottish Borders, all of Strathclyde and the Lothian and Borders, the Forth Valley and southern parts of Fife.
“The red weather warning is expected to begin at 10am tomorrow morning and last until 5pm tomorrow evening. A wider amber warning for high winds across the whole country and a yellow warning for snow in some parts still stay in place.
“The storm could bring winds up to 100mph.
“The Met Office advice is clear, the potential impacts include danger to life, structural damage to property and transport and power disruptions.”
He added: “We have to be clear, people should not travel and Police Scotland will issue a formal ‘do not travel’ advisory notice shortly. Councils will make decisions today on school closures.
“Red weather warnings like this are very rare. Our message is simple, please follow the advice from the Met Office and the police, take this seriously and stay safe.”
Swinney said the Scottish Government’s Resilience Room was activated this morning to co-ordinate help and to support Scotland’s frontline responders.
He said he would chair a meeting of the Resilience Room after First Minister’s Questions and further advice would be issued.
The Met Office red warning runs from 10am to 5pm and covers the central belt including Glasgow and Edinburgh, stretching north on the west coast to Jura in Argyll and Bute and south to Stranraer in Dumfries and Galloway.
Forecasters said the conditions bring a “risk of significant disruption to transport and power supplies as well as dangerous conditions outdoors”, with “very dangerous” driving conditions because of fallen trees.
They also warned of the potential for damage to buildings and homes.
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