Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) remains on Yellow Alert as its teams respond to the initial impact of Storm Ali.

As forecast, storm force winds have impacted much of the country from the early hours of this morning. Gusts in excess of 90mph have been recorded in exposed locations including Aonach Mor, with widespread gusts of 60-70mph recorded at lower levels. The weather front is expected to continue into the evening as the storm tracks across the country.

As of 1pm today, SSEN has successfully restored power to around 7,800 homes, with 5,200 homes currently remaining off supply. The main areas that continue to be impacted are Argyll and Perthshire.

Dale Cargill, Director of Customer Operations, said:

"Despite the extremely challenging weather conditions our teams are making excellent progress restoring power to our customers impacted by Storm Ali. However, with the weather predicted to continue throughout the course of today, with many parts of the country still to experience the worst of the storm, we expect there to be further disruption to supplies. We remain on a state of high alert and would like to reassure our customers we are well prepared to respond promptly to further disruption to supplies, where it is safe to do so."

"If anyone is concerned about the potential disruption to supplies for themselves or others, particularly family members of neighbours who may need extra support, I would encourage them to give our teams a call on 105. I would also urge members of the public not to approach any damage to our equipment and instead, report it either by calling 105 or via our PowerTrack App and our teams will investigate as soon as possible."

In preparation for Storm Ali, SSEN enacted its well-established resilience plans, increasing its standby resources in anticipation of potential damage to its network and moved its teams and equipment to the main areas due to be impacted.

  • Over 600 field staff are ready to respond promptly to damage to SSEN's network - this includes over 120 tree cutters
  • Mobile generation sets have been strategically deployed across SSEN's network region to assist with restoration efforts
  • Back-up generation stations on the inner Hebrides are on standby to help maintain supplies in the event of damage to circuits that supply the islands
  • Over 150 contact centre staff are available to respond promptly to customer enquiries
  • SSEN's teams have already proactively contacted over 125,000 Priority Service Customers to offer extra support where required
  • Welfare facilities, including catering vans, are on standby to support customers affected by potential disruptions to supplies
  • SSEN continues to liaise with local resilience partners to help coordinate efforts and ensure that everyone is prepared for any interruption to supplies should they occur

Customers are encouraged to be prepared for the possibility of disruption to supplies by:

  • Saving the new Freephone emergency power cut number '105' to your phone to use if your power goes off, or if you see any damage to the electricity network
  • Downloading SSEN's Power Track app to give you details of power cuts and restoration times and to report faults or damage to SSEN's network
  • Going to SSEN's website for advice and information on how to prepare for a possible loss of power
  • Following SSEN on Facebook and Twitter for regular updates

In the event of an interruption in power supplies, SSEN's customer service team will proactively contact customers on its Priority Service Register (PSR) to offer extra assistance, where required. People can qualify for the PSR if they:

  • Are dependent on electricity for home medical care
  • Have a chronic illness or short term medical condition
  • Are disabled
  • Have special communication needs
  • Have children under the age of five
  • Are over the age of 60

To find out more about the PSR, click here or call 0800 294 3259.