Red 'danger to life' warning extended to cover A9 by Met Office over fears of 'exceptional' rain during Storm Babet
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A red warning for exceptional rain which poses a 'danger to life' has been extended westward by the Met Office and now covers part of the key A9 trunk road linking the Highlands and central belt.
Met Office forecasters updated the warning this morning to extend it westward into Tayside. It runs from 6pm tonight until midday on Friday and now also covers an area that includes the A9 between Perth and Dunkeld.
"100-150 mm of rain is expected to fall widely within 24 hours with some locations likely to see 200-250 mm of rain which is expected to cause considerable impacts both where it falls and lower lying areas further east," said a Met Office spokesman.
Forecasters have also extended the duration of a yellow warning for rain in parts of Caithness, Sutherland and Ross-shire until the end of the day on Saturday.
A separate amber warning for rain in those areas is also in place from 6pm on Thursday until 9am on Friday.
A yellow warning for wind that covers most of northern Scotland is also currently in force, and will remain active until midday on Friday.
The winds have caused chaos across the north, with Highland Council cancelling of its bus services for the remainder of Thursday, CalMac sailings in the Minch suspended, and numerous power cuts that have knocked out the electricity to hundreds of Highland residents.
Related: Highland Council bus services all suspended due to Storm Babet
Related: Storm Babet gales spark cancellations of CalMac's Ullapool passenger ferries
