“Extremely challenging conditions” as major incident declared on the A9
Storm Gerrit has brought snow and flooding to the route, forcing closure
A major incident has been declared by Highlands Council as the A9 has been forced to close as Storm Gerrit causes travel chaos across Scotland.
The road between Drumochter and Dalwhinnie is seeing miles of vehicles trapped in snow with people trapped in their cars.
Agencies are working to reach the most vulnerable to give them water and blankets, but people are being urged to stay in their car while they await updates.
Conditions on the road have meant Ross County’s game against Rangers at Ibrox has been postponed, as they were not able to travel to Glasgow for the fixture.
BEAR Scotland, which managed the trunk roads in the area have sent six ploughs and three tractors to help get traffic moving again, but have described the conditions as “extremely challenging”.
Further south, the A9 at Ballinluig in Perthshire has also been closed by police due to flooding, while the Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) say around 27,000 properties across the country are facing power cuts.
They have warned some areas may see 48 hours without power.
Elsewhere, around 2-3cm of snow has fallen in Aviemore, and the highest windspeeds in the country have been recorded at Fair Isle, with 84mph gusts hitting the island to the north east of Scotland.
Eighteen British Airways (BA) flights have been grounded due to air traffic control restrictions, with domestic flights into Aberdeen, Edinburgh, and Glasgow cancelled.
Flooding between Lockerbie and Carlisle means all lines are blocked between those stations, with services on the Dalmuir-Balloch line closed for flooding at Bowling Station.
Trains running to Dumbarton East have been disrupted by a tree on the tracks, closing both lines, and passengers are being advised to check routes before travel.
Any tickets valid for travel on cancelled ScotRail services will be accepted on the December 28, and anyone who had a train cancelled or delayed by more than 29 minutes can contact the company for a refund.
Stay up to date with the latest travel and weather information on our stations and social media sites, as well as on those of ScotRail, Traffic Scotland, SEPA, and Police Scotland.
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