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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
National
Lucy Jackson

A quarter of rail services to be shut on Tuesday amid Storm Eowyn disruption

AROUND a quarter of rail services will be suspended on Tuesday as Scotland continues to feel the impact of Storm Eowyn.

The brunt of the storm hit the country on Friday, as a rare red weather warning was issued between 9am and 5pm.

Strong winds of up to 100mph were recorded, while schools closed and public transport services were suspended.

A teenager, 19, sadly died after a tree hit his car while he was driving near Mauchline, East Ayrshire, on Friday morning.

As of 6pm on Monday, approximately 5900 properties remain without power. The vast majority are expected to be reconnected by the end of Tuesday.

At least two schools are confirmed to be closed on Tuesday, with the relevant councils set to get in touch with affected parents and pupils.

While 75% of rail services are expected to resume on Tuesday, a quarter will remain closed as Network Rail continues to inspect and repair damage to the affected lines.

The Scottish Government’s Resilience Room (SGORR) met on Monday afternoon to discuss the continued impact of Storm Eowyn.

The meeting was chaired by Justice and Home Affairs Secretary Angela Constance and attended by Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop, Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth, Rural Affairs and Islands Secretary Mairi Gougeon and Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity Jim Fairlie.

They were joined by representatives from the Met Office, Police Scotland, Transport Scotland, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa), transport and utilities companies and resilience partners.

Angela Constance  (Image: PA) Commenting, Constance said: “Three days after the worst of Storm Eowyn, we can see how the sheer scale of the damage continues to impact Scotland’s return to normal.

“I want to thank everyone who is playing their part, day and night, to get services back up and running.

“Utilities companies are working as fast as possible, in often challenging in weather conditions, and have reconnected over 280,000 properties. Around 5900 properties are still without power and companies are in touch with those households to estimate restoration times and offer welfare or other support.

"While trunk roads and ferries are largely operating as normal, the railway continues to recover and Network Rail has experienced over 500 incidents. ScotRail were scheduled to operate 50% of services today but this has increased to around 73% over the course of today.

“We can however expect continued disruption on some lines to last until later this week, so I would ask passengers to be patient and check ScotRail and Network Rail information before they travel.

“A very small number of schools will be closed tomorrow and relevant councils will be in touch with parents and pupils where appropriate.”

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