:00:23. > :00:25.Welcome to Reporting Scotland. Tonight on your national news:
:00:25. > :00:31.violent storm-force gales batter the country. Winds of more than 100
:00:31. > :00:34.mile close motorways, bridges, airports and the railways. There
:00:34. > :00:39.has been extensive damage to homes and vehicles across central
:00:39. > :00:43.Scotland, but so far, few reports of serious injuries. We will be
:00:43. > :00:50.live with the latest from the street in Glasgow, where residents
:00:50. > :00:54.have had a very lucky escape from the Dales. -- the Dales.
:00:54. > :00:56.It's thought to be the worst storm for at least a decade, and at its
:00:56. > :00:59.height it left 130,000 households without electricity.
:00:59. > :01:09.So where did this huge storm come from, why was it stronger than
:01:09. > :01:09.
:01:09. > :01:18.expected, and how lucky are we that today is a bank holiday?
:01:18. > :01:22.Later in sport, more on the injured list for Rangers. And another
:01:22. > :01:24.player leaves the club for Norway. Violent storm forces winds wreaked
:01:24. > :01:30.havoc across central Scotland today. Edinburgh recorded the highest
:01:30. > :01:33.winds at over 100 miles an hour. Buildings were damaged and travel
:01:33. > :01:36.was severely disrupted, with all of the main bridges closed, rail
:01:36. > :01:39.services cancelled and flights and ferries also affected. The police
:01:39. > :01:41.and fire services were inundated with calls as people reported
:01:41. > :01:51.structural damage to homes and buildings and fallen trees blocked
:01:51. > :01:52.
:01:52. > :01:55.roads and rail routes. Catriona Renton compiled this report.
:01:55. > :02:00.The wind may have eased now, but the devastation they caused in just
:02:00. > :02:06.a few hours will take much longer to recover from. Cars were crushed,
:02:06. > :02:10.Reeves were damaged, and chimney had came down. It is pretty scary
:02:10. > :02:13.to be evacuated from your home, but there is worse things that can
:02:13. > :02:18.happen! It is not very nice, because we're not sure when we can
:02:18. > :02:21.get back in. The chimney stack went through the roof of this flat,
:02:21. > :02:26.leaving bricks and masonry everywhere. On the other side of
:02:26. > :02:35.the city, the steady watched as part of her home collapsed.
:02:35. > :02:39.next thing, the Brit and all that all came down. The storm came in
:02:39. > :02:44.overnight and batted the coast. Scotland woke to howling gales. The
:02:44. > :02:49.country was put on red alert, as severe wins back above the to the
:02:49. > :02:54.central belt. In Glasgow, a blast at the 91 mph hit the city. The
:02:54. > :02:58.River Clyde burst its banks. For those on foot, it was almost
:02:58. > :03:03.impossible to stay upright. In George Square, the Christmas tree
:03:03. > :03:11.toppled over. There was trouble chaos across the country as cranes
:03:12. > :03:17.were suspended, leaving people stranded. -- trains were suspended.
:03:17. > :03:22.We got to Motherwell, we sat for half an hour, moved on to, train
:03:22. > :03:26.turned around go back to Glasgow. We have been his tent at 7am, I
:03:26. > :03:29.have got to get to London, desperate to get to London. My
:03:29. > :03:33.husband is desperately ill, I have got to see my children, this is
:03:33. > :03:40.just awful, I can't tell you the amount that has disrupted.
:03:40. > :03:46.Throughout the day, bridges and roads were closed. And more
:03:46. > :03:50.overturned lorries caused havoc on the and nine. At Aberdeen airport,
:03:50. > :03:55.this plane had to abandon edge landing, and Glasgow airports
:03:55. > :04:00.suffered severe disruption. We came here at 6am this morning to travel
:04:00. > :04:04.to London, to go to Chicago, where we teach, and we have missed our
:04:04. > :04:08.connection to stop we have waited in line for five-and-a-half hours.
:04:08. > :04:12.It may have started off worse in the West, but as the storm headed
:04:12. > :04:22.east, dangerous buildings forced road closures come and people
:04:22. > :04:28.
:04:28. > :04:33.watched as the wind read tabard. -- In Dunoon, this was a scene at a
:04:33. > :04:36.caravan park. Three people here had to be airlifted to hospital. And
:04:36. > :04:42.foreign trees everywhere are hampering the efforts to get the
:04:42. > :04:47.lights back on. -- have fallen trees. Over 57,000 households
:04:47. > :04:52.remain without power. We will feel the ill-effects of this wind long
:04:52. > :05:00.after it has blown away. Let's go to our correspondent Jamie
:05:00. > :05:04.McIvor, who is in Springburn in Glasgow, and a scene of devastation.
:05:04. > :05:07.Indeed, this is one of the worst examples of storm damage anywhere
:05:07. > :05:13.in Scotland. One of the police officers at the scene described it
:05:13. > :05:16.to me as looking like something from a film. If you took a closer
:05:16. > :05:21.look crossed the road, it is miraculous nobody has been injured.
:05:21. > :05:25.What happened is that at about 80 him this morning, as the storm in
:05:25. > :05:31.Glasgow was at its worst, a gust of wind lifted the cladding from the
:05:31. > :05:35.roof of a tower block -- at about 8pm. He troubled about 200 yards
:05:35. > :05:39.through the air, and as you can see, there is a huge amount of debris on
:05:39. > :05:43.the front of the house, on the pavement, and on the road. The road
:05:43. > :05:46.has been blocked all day. Fortunately, there were no
:05:47. > :05:52.pedestrians on the street, but there was a man inside the house,
:05:52. > :05:56.he wasn't injured, fortunately. We still don't know how much damage
:05:56. > :06:01.there actually is to the house itself beyond the superficial. You
:06:01. > :06:06.can see that the chimney pot has been knocked over, and they Iraq
:06:06. > :06:11.slides off the roof. But frankly, people here are just breathing a
:06:11. > :06:14.sigh of relief that nobody was injured. A lucky escape, thank you.
:06:14. > :06:16.The high winds had been predicted by the Met Office, who'd issued an
:06:16. > :06:19.amber warning across central Scotland urging people to take
:06:19. > :06:23.precautions. That didn't change to a red alert until 8.15am this
:06:23. > :06:26.morning - as many areas were already being hammered. As Rob
:06:26. > :06:36.Flett reports, it now looks as if today's bank holiday gave many
:06:36. > :06:45.commuters a lucky escape. Trees were ripped out of the ground,
:06:45. > :06:49.closing roads. Travel by any means was difficult. Edinburgh's Waverley
:06:49. > :06:55.Station, one of the travel hubs forced to close for safety, as was
:06:55. > :06:59.the Forth Road Bridge. The highest winds were recorded here, 97 mph
:06:59. > :07:06.this morning. But the biggest winds in central Scotland were recorded
:07:06. > :07:09.in Edinburgh, Blackbird Hill, at 102 mph. It was all because of this
:07:09. > :07:17.book shaped weather system, an explosive area of low pressure
:07:17. > :07:25.which delivered high winds. This is worth that we had -- worse than we
:07:25. > :07:29.had of 8th December last year. This takes us back again to Boxing Day
:07:29. > :07:36.Storm of 1998. It is too early to say whether it is worse than that,
:07:36. > :07:39.but it is certainly close. Today's Bank Holiday meant roads were quiet
:07:39. > :07:42.force of the red alert from the Met Office came at about 8:15am. That
:07:42. > :07:47.would have been too late for most commuters to have changed their
:07:47. > :07:51.plans. I think it is true to say that if we had more traffic on the
:07:51. > :07:55.roads, it would have caused more problems. Many people were trying
:07:55. > :08:00.to visit people, people waiting for hospital buses, so does present a
:08:00. > :08:06.level of disruption, and it is more difficult if the warning comes late.
:08:06. > :08:12.That was as soon as the Met Office could have issued a warning. Today,
:08:12. > :08:16.it was wind, last year it had been volcanic ash, snow and ice. The
:08:16. > :08:20.extremes, something we are all having to get used to. We have
:08:20. > :08:25.experience of this, and we do what we can, but it is nature, and we do
:08:25. > :08:29.what we can to take steps to prevent disruption when we can, but
:08:29. > :08:33.we have just got to expect that these high wind occur, and we deal
:08:33. > :08:37.with them as well as we can. worst of the storm had blown
:08:37. > :08:41.through by mid- afternoon, allowing these drivers to get on the move.
:08:41. > :08:44.Anyone preparing to travel tomorrow should still check for any knock-on
:08:44. > :08:47.disruption which could affect their plans.
:08:47. > :08:50.Our weather presenter Christopher Blanchet joins me. We're used to
:08:50. > :08:56.windy weather in Scotland, but this last few weeks has been extreme -
:08:57. > :09:00.where is it all coming from? storm we saw this morning was a
:09:00. > :09:05.classic area of low pressure develops out of the Atlantic. We
:09:05. > :09:10.take a look at the map, we can see yesterday, the mild at Tadic air
:09:10. > :09:15.Reading into the cold Arctic air. - - the mild Arctic air running into
:09:15. > :09:19.the cold Arctic air. If we follow the map through, we can see that
:09:20. > :09:23.blow continuing to push in, not unusual for that to come to
:09:24. > :09:29.Scotland, but it was rapidly deepening, an explosive low, and
:09:29. > :09:33.with it, some storm-force winds. What was unusual was the track of
:09:33. > :09:40.the low, funnelling those very strong winds through the highly
:09:40. > :09:44.populated area through the central belt. The good news with this tour
:09:44. > :09:47.is that it actually moved through pretty quickly. We can see it
:09:47. > :09:54.whooping through Scotland, and by mid- afternoon go away out towards
:09:54. > :09:59.the North Sea, picking their storm- force winds with it. -- picking
:09:59. > :10:02.those storm-force winds. As we go through this evening, that low
:10:02. > :10:08.pressure continues to pull away, taking those storm-force winds with
:10:08. > :10:15.it as well. At their height, how strong were the gusts? We can see
:10:15. > :10:23.that in Edinburgh itself, we recorded a gust of 102 mph. Through
:10:23. > :10:28.much of the central belt, in excess of 90 mph. The good news is that
:10:28. > :10:32.the winds have gone, but tomorrow, we do have a rain to contend with.
:10:32. > :10:35.Very lucky it was that it was a Bank Holiday. Christopher will be
:10:35. > :10:37.back at the end of the programme. You're watching Reporting Scotland
:10:37. > :10:41.from the BBC. Still to come on the programme:
:10:41. > :10:47.He's gone round the world on a bike and rowed the Arctic - now Mark
:10:47. > :10:51.Beaumont is taking on the Atlantic. The dream is to get the world
:10:51. > :10:55.record, but the big prize would be the number one crossing, to be the
:10:55. > :10:58.first boat across the Atlantic in less than 30 days would be historic.
:10:58. > :11:01.In sport, there may have been three goals and three points for Rangers,
:11:01. > :11:04.but striking options are starting to dry up for Ally McCoist's side.
:11:04. > :11:07.And he's already picked up Commonwealth gold but now this
:11:07. > :11:14.Scottish swimmer is setting his sights on the top prize at London
:11:14. > :11:17.There is a warning many schools won't be able to draft in relief
:11:17. > :11:20.teachers in the early part of the new year the peak season for flu
:11:20. > :11:23.and other illness. The Secondary Teachers Association says it's
:11:23. > :11:27.because of radical cut in pay for temporary staff which is driving
:11:27. > :11:37.many to take up jobs outwith teaching. More from our education
:11:37. > :11:38.
:11:38. > :11:43.correspondent Seonag MacKinnon. Good, that will be an excellent one.
:11:43. > :11:46.Many teachers at their posts, but in the peak period for blue and
:11:46. > :11:52.other illnesses, some may not be, and their replacement could be
:11:52. > :11:55.missing, too. A huge number of supply teachers have left the
:11:55. > :11:59.profession. They are finding that five days' work stacking shelves in
:11:59. > :12:02.Tesco is better for them than taking the risk of not getting five
:12:02. > :12:08.days in a school, and being paid peanuts for the days they are
:12:08. > :12:14.working. Earlier this year, experienced tempt teachers were
:12:14. > :12:18.paid �145 a day, now all on a flat rate of �78 for the first five days,
:12:18. > :12:23.and that is before tax. Many out- of-work teachers are still waiting
:12:23. > :12:32.and hoping for that Kemp work. But others say it is not worth it once
:12:32. > :12:40.they have paid for child care and travel. If we are earning less than
:12:40. > :12:44.�37,000, last year, now we are only earning around �15,000. So they had
:12:44. > :12:48.different commitments, like mortgages, or children, lots of
:12:48. > :12:52.bills to pay, and now they are not able to manage that. Rural schools
:12:52. > :12:57.are finding it to be got to get supply teachers, but it is also
:12:57. > :13:03.hitting areas like West Lothian. Labour is calling for a national
:13:03. > :13:06.survey. The settlement we reached with the teaching unions, local
:13:06. > :13:11.authorities, earlier this year, was not idea, but it was the best in
:13:11. > :13:15.the circumstances, difficult circumstances. At that education
:13:15. > :13:19.authorities argue they need to make cuts. They say these are justified
:13:19. > :13:28.as short-term staff don't tend to work the same house or have the
:13:28. > :13:32.same responsibilities as long-term Plans for a big shake up of the
:13:32. > :13:35.House of Commons - which will see a cut in the number of Scottish MPs -
:13:35. > :13:37.are about to take a major step forward. A consutlation by the
:13:37. > :13:40.Scottish Boundary Commission into the proposals ends tomorrow. It
:13:40. > :13:46.could see some of the biggest political names having to fight for
:13:46. > :13:52.their seats. Here's our Westminster correspondent, David Porter.
:13:52. > :13:58.MPs are being told to slim down the House of Commons. More than 50 MPs
:13:58. > :14:03.will go, seven, more than 10% of the total, from Scotland. The
:14:03. > :14:07.jockeying for survival is already under way. It is musical chairs
:14:07. > :14:12.with machetes. When the music stops, there will be a limited number of
:14:12. > :14:18.seats and a large number of members and they will be grabbing each
:14:18. > :14:23.other around the throat. In the Highlands, the three Liberal
:14:23. > :14:29.Democrats MPs, Charles Kennedy, Danny Alexander and John Thurso
:14:29. > :14:33.will be fighting the two seats. In Fife, normal political foes have
:14:33. > :14:37.joined forces to prove what they believe are flaws in the
:14:37. > :14:41.commission's recommendations. I'm concerned about is the
:14:42. > :14:46.decisions about the size and shape of constituencies have got to be
:14:46. > :14:51.taken based on the natural relationship between one community
:14:51. > :14:54.and another. And not on a strictly an arithmetical basis. There's been
:14:54. > :15:00.an issue about the size of some of the constituencies which are very
:15:00. > :15:05.much at the top end and there is a feeling it is compensating for the
:15:05. > :15:11.Highland constituencies which a 25,000. The area which has
:15:11. > :15:17.attracted most attention is Fife. We have divided Fife into a number
:15:17. > :15:20.of constituencies and one of the boundaries is around Glenrothes. In
:15:20. > :15:24.drawing the line we seem to have stirred up quite a bit of
:15:24. > :15:30.controversy. The Boundary Commission will move to make its
:15:30. > :15:40.final recommendations. MPs have to agree the changes by 20th October
:15:40. > :15:42.13 if they are to happen by the Other stories across Scotland:
:15:42. > :15:45.Police in Aberdeen are appealing for witnesses after a sexual
:15:46. > :15:49.assault on a 15-year-old girl. The attack happened last night in the
:15:49. > :15:52.Torry Battery area of the city. Police are keen to trace a man
:15:52. > :15:56.who's described as muscular, in his mid-30s to 40, and just over five
:15:56. > :16:01.foot tall. They'd also like to hear from anyone who saw a silver car in
:16:01. > :16:03.the area. Councils have paid out almost 1.8
:16:03. > :16:09.million pounds in compensation over the last five years to drivers
:16:09. > :16:12.whose vehicles have been damaged by potholes. Glasgow City Council had
:16:12. > :16:15.the largest total compensation bill at just over 350,000 pounds - the
:16:15. > :16:25.amount the local authority paid out last year was almost 900% higher
:16:25. > :16:25.
:16:26. > :16:30.Labour say the Scottish Government will have to redouble its efforts
:16:30. > :16:32.to reach homelessness targets set in 2003. The Homelessness Act
:16:32. > :16:38.pledged to give "settled" accommodation" to everyone who
:16:38. > :16:41.becomes unintentionally homeless by the end of this year. Labour, who
:16:41. > :16:45.were in power in 2003, say Scotland is still 12% short of honouring
:16:45. > :16:53.that commitment. The Scottish Government says it remains
:16:53. > :16:56.committed to meeting the targets. It seems that circumnavigating the
:16:56. > :17:01.world on a bike and rowing the Arctic just aren't enough for the
:17:01. > :17:04.Scottish adventurer Mark Beaumont. As most of us try to drum up the
:17:04. > :17:08.energy to recover from the festive season, he's starting the New Year
:17:08. > :17:12.with his latest challenge - rowing the Atlantic in thirty days. The 29
:17:12. > :17:15.year old and his team set out from Morocco and have just completed
:17:15. > :17:23.their first full day at sea. Jackie O'Brien caught up with him before
:17:23. > :17:26.he left. The man who cycled the world has
:17:26. > :17:31.dumped his wheels and hopes to roll his way into the history books by
:17:31. > :17:37.beating the world record for crossing the Atlantic. The dream is
:17:37. > :17:45.to get the world record but the big prize is to get the first crossing,
:17:45. > :17:49.in less than 30 days, would be historic. An Arctic expedition has
:17:49. > :17:54.helped him prepare for the 3,000 mile challenge which has become
:17:54. > :17:59.known as the four-minute mile of ocean rowing. Just like the first
:18:00. > :18:03.to cycle, to get the first across the Atlantic, there is something
:18:04. > :18:07.about the figures which is quite exciting to target. After cycling
:18:07. > :18:14.around the world I was looking at the spaces in between, the watery
:18:14. > :18:18.gaps I had not crossed. So, as journeys, I saw myself going into
:18:18. > :18:22.ocean rowing as a period -- for a period. The adventurer will be part
:18:22. > :18:27.of a six-man team and has been training in the Highlands where the
:18:27. > :18:33.Caledonian Canal and Loch Ness provided ideal conditions. I am
:18:33. > :18:40.doing a long sessions using my oars. I train every day on the rowing
:18:40. > :18:43.machine but you cannot make up the spending 89 hours a day getting
:18:43. > :18:49.from Fort William to Inverness and we're getting tough conditions. It
:18:49. > :18:53.is a good test. Sailing in the Arctic may have been challenging
:18:53. > :18:57.but rowing the Atlantic 24 hours a day for a month were not be plain
:18:57. > :19:05.sailing. While they may gain a world record, it is estimated each
:19:05. > :19:09.team member could lose up to three stone in weight.
:19:09. > :19:12.I hope they did not meet the weather front we heard about. Let's
:19:12. > :19:15.get tonight's sport now from Dougie. Thomas Bendikson has left Rangers
:19:15. > :19:19.after refusing to sign a new contract. The 22-year-old Norwegian
:19:19. > :19:22.midfielder is heading home instead to join Tromso. It could be bad
:19:22. > :19:25.news for the Ibrox boss Ally McCoist who, after beating
:19:25. > :19:34.Motherwell 3 - 0 yesterday, is facing something of an injury
:19:34. > :19:41.crisis. There wasn't a blooming over Ibrox
:19:41. > :19:45.but it is a start and a goal as rare as hen's teeth. As one
:19:45. > :19:55.Northern Irish striker celebrated, another face the prospect of four
:19:55. > :19:58.
:19:59. > :20:04.or five weeks out with a damaged hamstring. Stephen Craigan eased
:20:04. > :20:13.the. Pressure with a well-finished own goal. The question facing Allan
:20:13. > :20:18.McCoist is where other goals coming from now?
:20:18. > :20:22.There was growing speculation he will leave in the transfer window.
:20:22. > :20:29.Steven Naismith is not expected to play again this season. The answer
:20:29. > :20:33.could come in the form of a fans' favourite. He has been training at
:20:33. > :20:40.Murray Park and McCoist expressed an interest in bringing the
:20:40. > :20:43.Spaniard back to Ibrox. But in the meantime, David Healey
:20:43. > :20:47.and John Fleck will be expected to get Rangers' title challenge back
:20:47. > :20:49.on track. The SFA's compliance officer will look tomorrow at the
:20:49. > :20:52.clash between Ryan McGowan and Ivan Sproule in yesterday's Edinburgh
:20:52. > :20:57.derby at Easter Road. The Hearts defender appeared to headbutt
:20:57. > :21:00.Sproule in the stomach during the Tynecastle side's 3-1 win. Referee
:21:00. > :21:05.Callum Murray took no action at the time but there could be
:21:05. > :21:08.retrospective punishment. And you can see highlights of all
:21:08. > :21:14.yesterday's SPL matches on Sportscene tonight at 10.35 on BBC
:21:14. > :21:18.1 Scotland. One of Scotland's top swimming
:21:18. > :21:21.stars says he's been dreaming of an Olympic medal since he was a child.
:21:21. > :21:26.Robbie Renwick knows what it takes to top the Commonwealth podium but
:21:26. > :21:29.he now has his sights on London 2012. Gold there could be a tall
:21:29. > :21:39.order, but as he's been telling our Olympics correspondent Kheredine
:21:39. > :21:46.
:21:46. > :21:48.Idessane, if you make the final, # I am on the edge of glory. # He
:21:48. > :21:56.swims around seven kilometres every session.
:21:56. > :21:58.He is in the pool by half-past five in the morning. But the kind of
:21:59. > :22:06.dedication you need to succeed, especially when you are aiming for
:22:06. > :22:10.the top. I have been dreaming of winning Olympic gold since I was a
:22:11. > :22:17.youngster. To come away with a medal would be fantastic. I have to
:22:17. > :22:22.be realistic. I have to pull something really special out of the
:22:22. > :22:32.back macro to do that. I'm sure other get there. He will, if this
:22:32. > :22:36.man has anything to do with it. His coach also has to put in long hours
:22:36. > :22:41.as he prepares his protege for the biggest day of his life at London
:22:41. > :22:46.2012. Home crowd, home advantage, using his experience and hopefully
:22:46. > :22:52.we will be in the final and it is all about handling the pressure and
:22:52. > :23:01.nerves. It is absolutely in the frame that any colour medal is
:23:01. > :23:05.possible. That's our goal. struck gold at the Commonwealth
:23:05. > :23:15.Games in Delhi and he is dreaming of a first ever Olympic medal.
:23:15. > :23:20.it comes to the final, it is really he wants it the most. I am up at 5
:23:20. > :23:25.o'clock every morning trading my heart out. No Scot has won since
:23:25. > :23:27.1996, Robbie Renwick is working hard to change that. Finally
:23:27. > :23:29.congratulations to Andy Murray who's in Brisbane preparing for the
:23:29. > :23:32.Australian Open. He's thorough the first round of
:23:32. > :23:41.the Brisbane International event, beating Mikeal Kukushkin in three
:23:41. > :23:44.Just a reminder before the weather that our money expert Fergus
:23:44. > :23:47.Muirhead will be joining us a week tomorrow. He'll be talking about
:23:47. > :23:53.general problems, particularly coming out of the Christmas period.
:23:53. > :23:56.If you want to contact him the details are on the screen now.
:23:56. > :24:01.Now let's find out what the weather's going to throw at us over
:24:01. > :24:06.the next few days Christopher. Hello, it was a very stormy day
:24:06. > :24:12.across much of the country. Tonight, the wind is away from us, it will
:24:12. > :24:15.still be windy, Gale Force with a heavy showers in western parts. We
:24:15. > :24:24.can see the map, heavy showers in the West are turning wintry on high
:24:24. > :24:29.ground. Dry and long clear spells in Dundee southwards. It will be
:24:29. > :24:33.cold and the risk of ice patches on cold and the risk of ice patches on
:24:33. > :24:38.untreated roads. As we head into tomorrow, there is the troublesome
:24:38. > :24:45.feature, and tomorrow it will be rain rather than wind causing
:24:45. > :24:48.issues. Zooming into detail, some brightness but rain pushes in from
:24:48. > :24:52.the West and it pushes in from the west across the whole of the
:24:52. > :24:58.country in the afternoon. A yellow warning from the Met Office. Heavy
:24:58. > :25:03.and persistent rain turning to snow on high ground. Mid-afternoon, a
:25:03. > :25:11.wet, breezy afternoon and a cold afternoon with temperatures fibre
:25:11. > :25:15.six degrees. Later on, it may creep up to seven. Across the North, dry,
:25:16. > :25:21.cloudy but rain is coming your way. Through the north and north-west,
:25:21. > :25:27.wet and windy and cold. The rain will be heavy and persistent and
:25:27. > :25:34.could cause problems. It continues see the evening before fragmenting
:25:34. > :25:38.and disappearing. The pressure chart shows the isobars on Thursday,
:25:38. > :25:42.straight down from the north. A cold blast for Thursday. Some
:25:42. > :25:49.sunshine by the end of the afternoon. Temperatures six or
:25:49. > :25:54.seven degrees. Gale force winds, nothing like today. Towards Friday,
:25:54. > :25:59.the wind swings around to the south-west, cloud, heavy rain again,
:25:59. > :26:03.temperatures eight or nine. Tonight, cold, tomorrow it will be wet.
:26:03. > :26:07.just before 7 o'clock, a summary of tonight's top stories. Violent
:26:07. > :26:10.storm forces winds have wreaked havoc across central Scotland today.
:26:10. > :26:13.Edinburgh recorded the highest winds at over 100 miles an hour.
:26:13. > :26:18.All of the main bridges were closed, rail services cancelled and flights
:26:18. > :26:20.and ferries also affected. The police and fire services were
:26:20. > :26:26.inundated with calls as people reported structural damage to homes
:26:26. > :26:29.and buildings and fallen trees blocked roads and rail routes.
:26:29. > :26:33.Two men, Gary Dobson and David Norris, have been found guilty of
:26:33. > :26:36.the murder of Stephen Lawrence eighteen years ago. In a landmark
:26:36. > :26:39.case that changed the rules on murder trials, the jury at the Old
:26:39. > :26:44.Bailey decided that the two men were involved in the fatal stabbing
:26:44. > :26:48.of the black teenager in 1993. There's a warning many schools
:26:48. > :26:51.won't be able to draft in relief teachers in the early part of the
:26:51. > :26:54.new year - the peak season for flu and other illness. The Secondary
:26:54. > :26:57.Teachers Association says a radical cut in pay for temporary staff is
:26:57. > :27:00.driving many to take up jobs outside teaching.
:27:00. > :27:03.Police in Norfolk say they're treating the discovery of a woman's
:27:03. > :27:06.body on the Queen's Sandringham Estate as murder. A dog walker made
:27:06. > :27:08.the discovery on New Year's Day and officers are examining missing