Storm: power cuts in the UK, flights out in Amsterdam

Storm Boelo battered northern Europe on Sunday, leaving more than 150,000 households without electricity across the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. The severe weather system, which arrived just two days after Storm Austen swept through the region, caused a death in Scotland, disrupted rail and air travel, and prompted official warnings of life-threatening conditions. Authorities in the three nations confirmed that the combined impact of the back-to-back storms resulted in widespread blackouts and infrastructure damage. In the United Kingdom, the Energy Networks Association reported that over 82,000 homes in the north of Britain were cut off from the grid on Sunday. This figure included more than 30,000 properties in Scotland alone. While engineers had managed to restore power to approximately 344,900 customers since the previous storm, the ongoing severe weather limited their ability to safely access certain areas to repair faults. The association noted that staff were working around the clock to identify and fix issues, though access remained difficult in some regions. Police Scotland announced that a 60-year-old man died after being struck by a falling tree on a minor road at Mid Kelton near Gourock. The incident occurred around 10:30 a.m. on Sunday. A spokesperson stated there were no suspicious circumstances and that a report would be submitted to the procurator fiscal. Additionally, two women were injured by another falling tree in central Scotland. The national weather service, the Met Office, issued an amber wind warning for Scotland, parts of Northern Ireland, and the far north of England. The warning, which took effect at 9:00 p.m. on Saturday, indicated wind speeds widely reaching 60 to 70 miles per hour. Gusts exceeded 80 miles per hour in exposed coastal locations. Specifically, winds of 84 miles per hour were recorded in Argyll and Bute in western Scotland, while 83 miles per hour were measured in Snowdonia. The agency warned that flying debris and high waves posed a danger to life and urged residents to remain indoors as much as possible. For Scotland and northern England, a yellow rain warning was also in effect, with forecasts predicting up to 80 liters of rain per square meter in some areas. Transportation networks suffered significant disruptions. In Scotland, fallen trees, severed power cables, and ripped-open ground impeded road and rail traffic. Several railway lines were closed, and speed restrictions were implemented across the country. Network Rail Scotland shared images showing flooding from tracks onto platforms at a Glasgow station and fallen trees obstructing lines elsewhere. The operator advised residents living near rail lines to securely anchor garden objects, citing incidents involving loose items such as trampolines and sheds found near the tracks. Northern Ireland was also affected by the storm. The local network operator reported that 7,000 households lost power. In the capital, Belfast, ferry connections to northwest England were cancelled, and several flights at the city's two airports were scrapped. Across the channel, the storms continued to disrupt services in continental Europe. At Amsterdam Schiphol, one of Europe's busiest airports, 90 departures were cancelled due to violent winds, according to counts by the news agency AFP. The cancellations primarily impacted flights to European cities including Paris, Rome, and Dublin. Dozens of landings were either delayed or turned back. The airport administration cited "violent wind" as the primary cause of the disruption, though the total number of affected flights was not specified. In France, the utility company Enedis reported that nearly 60,000 homes remained without power at midday on Sunday, mostly in the Normandy and Brittany regions. Earlier, at the peak of Storm Austen on Saturday, 288,000 homes had been darkened. A marathon runner in northern France sustained minor injuries after a tree fell during the race. In Germany, Storm Austen cut power to 10,000 homes in and around the southwestern town of Freiburg-Breisgau. The local main hospital restricted services to emergencies due to the blackout, which also interrupted the mobile phone network. German police reported that two people were seriously injured on Saturday when scaffolding was blown away by strong winds at a market in the town of Nastatten. Belgium also experienced impacts from the weather systems, with four people injured by falling trees in Brussels on Saturday. The sequence of storms marked the first major autumn weather event for the region, following a period of relative calm. The international designation for the current system is Boelo, while it is known as Manja in Germany. The previous storm, Austen, had previously damaged an unused pier in Brighton on England's southern coast on Friday. As of late Sunday, the amber wind warning remained in effect for wide parts of Scotland and northern England until 9:00 p.m. local time.