Scottish Government Resilience Committee Met To Discuss The Impacts Of Storms Isha And Jocelyn

23rd January 2024

The Scottish Government's Resilience Room (SGoRR) has met to consider the impacts of Storm Isha and preparations for Storm Jocelyn.

The meeting was chaired by First Minister Humza Yousaf and attended by members of the Cabinet, including the Transport Minister, the Met Office, Police Scotland, Transport Scotland, SEPA, transport and utilities companies and resilience partners.

While today’s Met Office yellow warning for wind has now been lifted, some rail and ferry services have resumed and all trunk roads have reopened. Power companies are working to restore supplies to more than 15,000 properties, and 17 regional flood alerts and 32 local flood warnings remain.

An amber warning for wind has been issued for the Western Isles, western Highlands, northern coast, Orkney Islands and part of the Moray Firth coast from 1800 tomorrow until 0800 on Wednesday. A yellow warning for wind covers the rest of Scotland - except the Shetland Islands - from 1600 tomorrow until 1300 on Wednesday. A yellow warning for rain for parts of west and southwest Scotland is also in place from 0700 to 1800 tomorrow.

ScotRail will suspend services from 1900 tomorrow, and there will be no rush hour services on Wednesday morning,

People are urged to continue to check all relevant safety advice issued by the police and other agencies.

First Minister Humza Yousaf said, "Tragically, Storm Isha has led to lives being lost and I send my sincere condolences to the families affected.

"The strong winds and heavy rain have impacted communities across Scotland. I want to thank all those who have worked throughout the night and today to keep the public safe and respond to those impacts and restore normality.

“But the exceptional weather conditions are not over. Storm Jocelyn is on its way to the UK and is likely to cause more disruption, with another period of strong winds further buffeting our infrastructure and rain falling on already saturated ground.

“Travel is likely to again be difficult, particularly heading into Wednesday’s rush hour, so I urge everyone to follow guidance from Police Scotland and check updates from transport providers, Transport Scotland and the Met Office."

Martin Thomson, National Operations Manager for Resilience at Transport Scotland, said, "Focus is now shifting onto the next named storm, Jocelyn, for tomorrow into Wednesday, and preparations are already underway with rail, aviation and ferries colleagues to ensure we are as ready as we can be.

“The public can play its part and plan ahead by visiting www.traffic.gov.scot. Staff from our trunk road operating companies will be patrolling the network and undertaking inspections to respond quickly to any further treefall or blocked drains. Their proactive efforts in terms of branch cutting and drain clearing at vulnerable locations has helped minimise disruption in the past.

“Across the wider network, we can expect to see more delays and cancellations with ferries, flights and rail from Tuesday into Wednesday morning. Please check with your public transport operator for the latest information and your local authority and Police Scotland for the latest information on local roads.”