85mph gale warning for Caithness and Sutherland extended by Met Office
Storm force winds are set to batter more of the far north on Wednesday, the Met Office has warned after extending a yellow alert for gales.
A yellow warning was already set to come into force at 7am on Wednesday, covering most of Caithness as well as Sutherland's north and west coasts.
However, in an update on Tuesday, the Met Office has now brought forward the start time for the warning to 5am and also extended the geographical area covered by it.
The alert, which runs until 7pm on the same day, now covers all of Caithness and Sutherland, large swathes of Ross-shire, the Black Isle and Inverness.
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"Very strong south-westerly winds will develop during Wednesday, easing again from the west later in the day. Gusts of 65-75mph are likely, with a few places perhaps seeing gusts of up to 85mph at times," said the Met Office spokesperson. "Over north-west Scotland these windy conditions will be accompanied by heavy rain for a time, during the morning and early afternoon."
A separate yellow warning has also been issued for the rest of the Highlands and Scotland, as well as parts of Northern Ireland and northern England. This latter alert runs from 9am to 5pm on Wednesday, but wind speeds are expected to be lower, peaking at around 65mph.
Commenting on this new second alert, a Met Office spokesperson added: "Gusts of 45 to 55mph are expected widely with a few places – most likely hills and coastal areas – are likely to see gusts reaching up to 65mph.
"During the late morning and early afternoon high gusts will be accompanied by rain, heavy at times before wind starts to slowly ease from the north later. Over western Scotland, these windy conditions will be accompanied by heavy rain at times."
