Storm Isha: Linlithgow resident speaks of 'near misses' after tree falls and crushes car

Residents speak of the devastation caused by the extreme weather as storm Isha rages on.

A woman from West Lothian has spoken about how a large tree snapped under the pressure of the gale-force winds during Storm Isha and crushed her car.

Lesley Kerr, 62, said the roof of her 2019 Peugeot had been left completely caved in under the weight of the fallen tree.

The damaged car, parked in Linlithgow, has since been cordoned off, along with several other vehicles which were damaged in the incident on Sunday evening.

Lesley Kerr, 62, standing next to her car which was damaged by a fallen tree during Storm Isha on Sunday evening (pic: Lisa Ferguson)

Storm Isha is bringing the UK to a standstill as flights and trains are cancelled and “danger to life” red weather warnings remain in place with a risk of possible tornadoes.

An 84-year-old man died after crashing his car into a fallen tree in Fife. Thousands have been left without power across the country due to the extreme weather.

Ms Kerr found out about her damaged car after seeing a picture of it posted on Facebook on Sunday evening.

Speaking to The Scotsman, she said: “I saw a photo of a car damaged by a tree on the Linlithgow page and then I realised I knew exactly what tree it was and what car it was.

The fallen tree damaged several vehicles in its path (pic: Lisa Ferguson)

"Someone had just parked their car nearby on the street, so it was a near miss. I haven’t seen the full extent of the damage in daylight as I only saw it last night [Sunday], but the roof has caved in. I will be surprised if it’s not written off.

"It’s still cordoned off because it was too dangerous to do anything about it last night in the dark. The council also have other trees on main roads to clear first.”

Ms Kerr studies sound production at Glenrothes College and also volunteers as a driver taking musicians to gigs. Relying on her car for both, she said she would have to rent a vehicle in the meantime.

"We have gigs lined up for Burns Night coming up and I am the main driver,” she said. "We will have to look into hiring a van or something. Thankfully no one was hurt though. That’s the positive you can take away from the situation.”