Castle Douglas — Falling Tree Kills Man as Storm Boelo Hits UK

A 60-year-old man died after being struck by a falling tree near Castle Douglas, in Dumfries and Galloway, in southern Scotland, as Storm Boelo brought severe wind and rain across the United Kingdom, Police Scotland said.

What happened to the man who was killed?

Police Scotland said the man was pronounced dead at the scene after the incident near Castle Douglas at about 10:30 on Sunday, according to the force's account relayed to the BBC. The death is the most serious reported casualty so far from Storm Boelo, which followed Storm Austen into the UK on Friday. Separately, two women were taken to hospital after being struck by a fallen tree in Aberfeldy, Perth and Kinross, at around 12:50 GMT on Sunday, police said.

How many homes lost power across the UK?

The Energy Networks Association (ENA) said 161,400 properties were without power as of 15:00 GMT on Sunday afternoon because of the storm. The ENA said crews faced delays because the conditions were "limiting network engineers' opportunities to safely start the work." Across Storm Boelo and the earlier Storm Austen combined, 838,700 properties nationwide experienced power cuts, the ENA said.

Where are weather warnings still in effect?

The Met Office's amber wind warning was due to remain in place until 21:00 on Sunday across Scotland and parts of northern England. A yellow warning covering Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, parts of the East and West Midlands, and North Wales was also set to expire at 21:00 on Sunday. The Met Office urged people to "stay indoors as much as possible," adding: "If you do go out, try not to walk, or shelter, close to buildings and trees." Wind gusts peaked at 85mph in Machrihanish, in Argyll and Bute, and reached 84mph in both Stornoway, in the Outer Hebrides, and Capel Curig, in north Wales, the Met Office said.

What flooding and travel disruption has the storm caused?

Four flood warnings were in place for parts of England and Wales on Sunday, alongside 17 flood warnings across Scotland. Rainfall totals were highest in the Scottish Highlands, with Cluanie Inn recording 130mm, according to the Met Office. The Clyde coast towns of Largs, Gourock and Girvan were among the hardest hit: the main Skelmorlie to Largs road suffered damage, several Largs businesses flooded overnight on Saturday, a boat ended up on the roadside in Gourock, and Girvan reported power outages throughout Sunday. In Dumbarton, on the north bank of the River Clyde, Muhammad Zubair Ashraf said his mobile phone shop flooded overnight, estimating £5,000 to £10,000 in damage and describing himself as "heartbroken" at the scale of the losses. Police in Scotland warned against unnecessary road journeys, and the BBC reported disruption to ferry services and some flights to and from Belfast and Glasgow.

What is the Scottish government doing in response?

Scottish government ministers and officials met on Sunday afternoon to discuss the storm's impact, according to a government statement cited by the BBC. The statement said conditions might ease later Sunday but that there was potential for adverse weather to return in the coming days.

Storm Boelo by the numbers

Weather warning terms explained

Amber warning: A Met Office alert indicating increased likelihood of impacts such as travel delays, power cuts and risk to life, requiring people to plan ahead and adjust behavior.

Yellow warning: A lower-tier Met Office alert signaling that severe weather is possible and could affect travel or daily routines, though impacts are expected to be less widespread than under amber.

ENA (Energy Networks Association): The industry body representing the UK's electricity and gas network operators, which tracks and reports outage figures during severe weather events.

Storm Boelo's amber and yellow warnings were both due to lapse at 21:00 GMT on Sunday, though the Scottish government cautioned that further disruptive weather could follow in the days ahead, per its statement to the BBC.