Thousands cut off in Storm Abigail’s 84mph winds

Flood warnings are in force for three areas of south west and north east Scotland, with snow providing an additional hazard on higher roads such as the A9 at Slochd summit, south of Inverness.

CalMac cancelled ferry sailings between Oban and Colonsay, and Mallaig and Lochboisdale in South Uist, with most of its other routes on amber alert for potential disruption.

A further yellow severe weather warning, for heavy rain and potential flooding, will cover Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway from 3pm tomorrow until 3am on Monday, when up to 100mm (4in) of rain is forecast.

Scottish Hydro Electric Power Distribution said some 1,300 people remained without power today, including in Lewis, Harris and Orkney.

It said a spate of power cuts overnight had led to more than 30 high-voltage faults across Western Isles, Skye, Colonsay, Argyll and Angus.

A spokesman said: “Engineers worked late into the night and started at first light to restore power and to assess any damage caused by the storm.

“They are continuing to work in challenging conditions to restore the customers who remain off supply, with the aim to have all customers back on supply today.”

Director of customer services Dale Cargill said: “Our continuous programme of investment in our network to make it more resilient meant it stood up well to the high winds and lightning strikes in the first storm of the year.”

ScottishPower said none of its customers were affected.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency has flood warnings in force for the Upper Solway Firth and Loch Ryan in Dumfries and Galloway, and around the mouth of the River Spey at Spey Bay, east of Elgin.

Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team was called out last night to look for a hillwalker who attempted to climb Ben Nevis via Observatory Gully during the storm.

The team posted on Facebook that due to the weather, “on the scale of difficulty this route is certain death”.

The man was found with chest injuries and lowered to safety at about 8:30pm.