A man has died in a weather-related incident in County Donegal, Ireland, as Storm Amy continues to wreak havoc across the UK and Ireland. Irish police reported the death in the Letterkenny area shortly after 4.15pm on Friday. The Met Office has issued a yellow wind warning covering the entire UK for Saturday, with an amber warning for damaging winds in northern Scotland until 9pm.
Around 42,000 homes remained without power on Saturday evening. Gusts of over 100mph were recorded in exposed areas, causing widespread travel disruption. Many railway lines and roads were closed, and ferry services were cancelled. In London, all eight royal parks, including Hyde Park and Richmond Park, were closed due to strong winds, with Sunday openings delayed for safety inspections.
Storm Amy has set a new record for the deepest area of low pressure in the UK for October, with a central pressure of 947.9 hectopascal (hPa) recorded at Baltasound, Shetland, surpassing the previous record of 950.9hPa set in 1988. Further travel disruption is expected, with flights, rail, and ferry services cancelled. A building collapsed in Glasgow on Friday, falling onto a car and causing road closures.
Power cuts were reported in the Highlands and several islands. Fraser Wilson from Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks said work would continue to restore power to 62,000 customers, but warned that the storm was not over. Road closures included the Forth Road Bridge, while the Tay Road Bridge reopened with a 30mph speed restriction, remaining closed to high-sided vehicles.
Scotland's CalMac ferry operator expected many services to be disrupted over the weekend. The Scottish government urged people to delay travel if possible. On Sunday, the north, north-east, Orkney and Shetland islands will remain under a yellow wind warning until 9am. Network Rail reported over 60 incidents on the network in the first two hours of the storm, including flooding and debris on tracks.
