Updates throughout the day.

9am: Roads across Scotland are closed following a night of severe storm-force winds. Among those affected are M8 Kingston Bridge, where a lorry has overturned, and the A92 Tay Road Bridge. 

The devastation is apparent from islands and villages to city centres, with overturned bins and trees blocking roads, and flying debris  causing breakages and damage to vehicles.

9:15: The Met office weather warning has been upgraded to red.

9:18: Central Scotland police report that the M9 is closed northbound at junction 8 due to  fallen trees and overturned lorries. McGills buses have suspended services between Glasgow and Inverclyde.

9:20: Hillhead subway station in Glasgow is temporarily closed due to a fallen chimney on Byres Road.

9:29: Those planning a bank holiday trip to visit the pandas will have to rethink their plans as Edinburgh Zoo is closed due to the high winds. The EdXmas site at Princes Street Gardens is closed, along with Glasgow on Ice and other attractions in Glasgow's George Square.

9:40: Access routes to Edinburgh Airport are shut. Travellers are urged to contact their airlines for information.

9:45: Midlothian council have cancelled bin collection as the winds make the task too dangerous.

10:00: Three people have been taken to hospital after caravans collided at a holiday park in Inverchapel in Argyll.

10:01: The Christmas tree in George Square has toppled over.

10:13: The Forth, Tay, Kingston and Erskine Bridges are all shut. Traffic Scotland is urging people not to travel if at all possible.

10:15: More tourist attractions and leisure facilities across Scotland are closing because of the weather.  Historic Scotland has just confirmed that Edinburgh and St Andrews castles and St Andrews Cathedral will not open today.

10:29: More transport routes across Scotland have been affected, with reports of cancellations from Lothian Buses and reduced services on East Coast and West Coast trains. 

10:30: Edinburgh Airport access road has reopened.

10:33: All services at Glasgow Central, Glasgow Queen Street and Edinburgh Waverley are suspended.

11:00: While the highest winds appear to be subsiding in central Scotland, the warnings continue for the north of the country.

Fallen trees continue to close roads across Scotland and drivers are advised to check individual routes via the www.trafficscotland.org website.

Major roads affected include:

M8 in Glasgow, closed in both directions between J19 and J20

M9 in Falkirk, closed between J8 and J9 Banockburn

M9 in Edinburgh, between J1A and J2

A1 Dunbar, southbound at A1087 - police are directing traffic after a lorry overturned.

A68 Pathhead, where traffic is heavy because of fallen trees.

11:15: This picture of a fallen tree at Garrioch Drive in Glasgow was taken by Herald photographer Kirsty Anderson. Please share your pictures, film and news with us via hs@heraldscotland.com.



The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) has issued ten flood warnings for Tayside and the Moy Bridge in the Highlands.

11:35: Reports that homes are without power in the Trossachs and Argyll.

11:50: Strathclyde Fire and Rescue say that weather conditions are keeping staff exceptionally busy, with 450 calls from midnight and 180 incidents  in progress at time of reporting. SFR's Director of Operations, Assistant Chief Officer David Goodhew, said: "Our firefighters are working hard to meet the exceptional demand we are experiencing."

"The weather has caused chaos on the roads and we have attended a number of weather related road traffic collisions. We are also taking a huge number of calls regarding damaged buildings and loose material and I'd like to take this opportunity to remind members of the public that they should not put themselves at risk in an attempt to make safe their property."

12:38: This dramatic picture was taken by Lucy Janes, who lives in Thornwood Avenue, Glasgow. She says: "I heard a thump around 8am this morning and found this."

12:50: The Tay bridge is open in both directions, to cars only. The Kingston Bridge is now open eastbound.

12:55: Blackford Hill in Edinburgh earlier recorded a gust of 102 mph.

12:55: It seems the car pictured above isn't the only victim of damaged chimneys. Edinburgh-based crime writer Ian Rankin (@Beathhigh) has tweeted: "I'm sure there's a good reason why one of our chimney pots is lying in the garden."

13:00: Byres Road is still closed. As a result Hillhead underground station is still shut.

13:15: If you live in North Lanarkshire and wish to report a fallen tree or other obstruction, you can do so using this online form.

13:30: Picture shows a fallen advertising board at a petrol station in Glasgow City Centre (PA).

14:10: Christopher Millar tweeted this picture of an overturned Eddie Stobart lorry, taken outside Stirling, where there continue to be delays on major roads. You can send your updates to us via Twitter @heraldscotland or email hs@heraldandtimes.co.uk.

14:27: Oban lifeboat crew has reported its first callout of the year attending to a manned fishing vessel in Carding Mill Bay, Oban, which had taken on over a tonne of water at the height of the morning's storms.

The Mora Edith Macdonald lifeboat arrived on the scene shortly after 11:30 and cleared the water with a salvage pump. The troubled vessel was made safe by midday and its owner remained on board after the lifeboat returned to shore.

14:47: Lothian and Borders police have scaled down their alerts as winds have eased. Motorists in the area are advised that they can travel but should expect delays.

Hillhead subway in Glasgow has reopened following earlier closure. Safety checks are underway on the Forth Road bridge ahead of a decision about reopening.

15:00: As transport conditions improve, there are more discoveries of damage to buildings and homes. In East Kilbride, part of the roof of Lidl supermarket was blown off. The picture below, taken by reader Iain McAllister, shows severe damage to a home in Piper Road in Houston, Renfrewshire.

15:50:  The Association of British Insurers (ABI) says firms will react quickly to help policy holders affected by storm damage, which should be covered by home and business property insurance policies - while comprehensive motor insurance will cover damage caused to vehicles.

Nick Starling, ABI's director of general insurance, said: "Insurers expect bad weather to strike and are geared up to dealing with claims for storm damage. Their number-one priority is to ensure that anyone who suffers damage gets their claim dealt with as quickly as possible."

The ABI told those making a claim it was important to contact their insurer as soon as possible for advice and to get the claim moving.
Most insurers have 24-hour emergency helplines.

16:00: It looks like things are getting moving again for those planning homeward travel. However, delays are likely across Scotland as public transport services are diverted due to the weather.

Rail

Trains are now running between Glasgow Central and East Kilbride and Barrhead. Virgin trains are now running between Carlisle and Glasgow and Edinburgh Haymarket.

Shuttle trains will run between Anderston and Motherwell and Anderston and Lanark.

Go to www.nationalrail.co.uk for more information.

Road

The Forth Road Bridge has reopened in both directions.

Lothian Buses and First Group buses say their services are continuing, though many diversions are in place. Stagecoach West Scotland have advised that local services on Arran are suspended due to blocked roads and the Stagecoach Bluebird service from Banff to Gardenstown has been suspended for the rest of the day.

Passengers planning to travel by bus are advised to check  the operators' websites for details.

The Traffic Scotland (www.trafficscotland.org) website is accessible after crashing briefly during a period of high demand earlier in the day.

It reports that the M74 southbound is closed at J7 at Larkhall, as well as the M9 bridge over the A9 at J8 (Kinnard) westbound.

Air

Inbound restrictions at Edinburgh airport have been lifted. Decisions about departing flights will be made on a case by case basis.

Some flights to and from Aberdeen Airport have been cancelled and one plane attempting to land in the high winds had to turn back.

16:30: Transport minister Keith Brown has praised the multi-agency response to this morning's high winds: "As a result of contingency arrangements, power companies had already drafted in staff to deal with the impact of the high winds and they are being deployed as quickly as possible to restore power supplies once it is safe to do so," he said.

"Transport operators are similarly extremely busy clearing roads and railway lines where fallen trees, other debris, fallen power lines and overturned vehicles are causing considerable disruption.