UK weather: 10 people airlifted after multiple landslides on roads in Scotland
Amber and yellow weather alerts for heavy downpours are in place across large parts of Scotland until Sunday morning - with a month's worth of rain expected to fall in a single day.
Sunday 8 October 2023 11:00, UK
Ten people have been airlifted to safety after extreme rainfall caused multiple landslides in Scotland.
Aerial footage shared by search and rescue helicopters showed soil across the A83 between Tarbet and Lochgilphead - with the A815 also affected.
Several vehicles were stuck, and Police Scotland told Sky News that no injuries have been reported.
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Amber and yellow weather alerts for heavy downpours are in place across large parts of Scotland - and they have now been extended until Sunday afternoon.
Flooding has been reported on roads nationwide, and the M9 motorway near Stirling was described as "barely passable".
The Scottish government has held a resilience meeting with partner agencies to discuss their response to the heavy rain.
Rail services have also been cancelled, and passengers in England are being urged not to travel to Scotland. Where services are running, reduced speeds are in operation.
Network Rail Scotland said its pumps in Clydebank had been "overwhelmed" by extreme rainfall - with water rising to window level on a train.
And while the mainline between Edinburgh and Glasgow Queen Street had temporarily been closed, engineers have now concluded it is safe for services to run.
Sporting events have also been disrupted, with the third round of the Alfred Dunhill Links golf championship at St Andrews postponed until Sunday.
Dundee's Scottish Premiership game with Ross County was called off due to a waterlogged pitch, one of many football matches affected.
Up to 180mm (8in) of rain has been forecast for parts of the Highlands, in what Scottish authorities are describing as a "major rainfall event".
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency currently has 17 flood alerts in force - alongside 49 flood warnings, and one severe flood warning in Aviemore.
Vincent Fitzsimons, flood duty manager for SEPA, said: "I want to be very clear that this is not a normal autumn day for Scotland.
"We're expecting extensive river and surface water flooding in affected areas. There is a danger to life. There will be widespread impacts to road and rail. There is a risk of more significant community scale property flooding."
The agency added that it is really concerned about families travelling during the school holidays, as some may currently be camping.
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The Met Office says "there is a huge contrast in weather across the UK this weekend".
Temperatures in South East England could reach 24C (75F) on Saturday and 25C (77F) on Sunday - with the Midlands and Wales also remaining sunny in unusual conditions for October.
Meteorologist Tom Morgan explained that the contrasting weather was caused by warm weather travelling up from France meeting cold weather coming from the north - leading to the heavy rain in Scotland.
The warm weather in southern parts was expected to last until Tuesday, with the worst of the rain expected by Sunday in Scotland.
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