Thousands of homes are spending another day without power after two storms battered parts of Scotland. More than 80,000 homes lost supply during Storm Malik on Saturday before Storm Corrie hit 38,000 more on Sunday. The electricity network in the North East and the Highlands were worst affected by the gusts of up to 92 mph. Power has been restored to many homes but 40,000 were still off grid on Monday morning, half of them related to two faults in Stonehaven and Deeside. Scottish and Southern Energy Networks (SSEN) said they were prioritising the 7,000 customers who have been without supplies since the first storm. A number of welfare centres have been opened in Aberdeenshire for people needing showers and power, while hot food is being served at various school canteens. Food trucks have also been sent to areas most in need. Anyone without power who needs advice or support can call an assistance phone line on 0808 196 3384. About 19,000 cases relate to two major faults affecting customers in the Stonehaven area (13,000) and Deeside (6,000). ADVERTISEMENT SSEN said restoration efforts from Storm Corrie would continue into Tuesday, with the possibility that for "small clusters" of customers this may extend into Wednesday.
"Our teams are scouting the lines now, we've got helicopters out now we've got light to make sure we've got full assessment of the impact of the damage and give accurate restoration times to our customers," he said. "The firm has 21 welfare vehicles providing hot food and drink to customers, and an offer of alternative accommodation has been made to those who are still without power because of Storm Malik." Mr Keddie said they have tried to give accurate times that people can expect to have supply restored. We've told our customers that where we didn't have the full details of the fault it would be Tuesday evening and that is four days from when the impact arrived from Storm Malik. "If we can outperform that target, if we can get there quicker we will change that restoration time." Some residents have told BBC Scotland they have struggled to get information from the energy supplier. Pauline Thom, from near Huntly, is isolating with Covid and is relying on support from her sons to bring her supplies. 'Back to where we were'"I can't go out and access any food or get water or anything," she said. "I've got lots of animals - I've got sheep and horses. I've tried phoning the electric companies and Scottish Water but nobody seems to know if there's any help." Douglas Morrison from near Kemnay told BBC Scotland: "We got power last night for three hours yesterday, but then the first couple of gusts of wind we lost the power again so we're back to where we were before." "It's almost like it's every time there's a storm now - the last four storms we've had three power cuts." BBC Scotland's Euan McIlwraith said the wind blew across the stubble fields in Banff and picked up the chaff, creating a bizarre spectacle. "We had drifts of straw three feet deep so we were blocked off by what looked like snow drifts but was actually drifts of straw. It was the most bizarre thing," he told Good Morning Scotland. Several schools in Aberdeenshire, the Highlands and Moray were closed due to storm damage or power outages. In the Highlands, SSEN welfare centres were set up in Cannich and Munlochy to offer hot food and drinks for people without power. On Sunday evening, Cairngorm Mountain Rescue Team had a "full team call-out" for a missing walker in high winds and snow on the Cairngorm Plateau. The person was found by a climbing party and escorted to safety. Most routes are expected to reopen during the course of the morning but travellers should check before they travel.
Other travel problems include:
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