The Independent, on Climate, 25 October 2026

6.0out of 10Serious

Storm Boelo latest: Thousands without power and hundreds of flights cancelled as 80mph winds batter UK

Tap a highlight to see why it matters.2 findings

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Read our Privacy notice Thousands of homes in the UK are without power, more than 1,500 flights have been delayed, and train services have been disrupted after Storm Boelo hit the UK with winds of more than 80mph, triggering “danger to life” weather warnings. The National Grid, SSEN and SP Electricity North West’s live maps and trackers show that thousands of houses are affected by power cuts, while flights to and from major UK airports have been disrupted amid severe weather conditions.

The Met Office issued amber weather warnings for parts of the north of England , Scotland and the north-east of Northern Ireland on Saturday night. Winds peaked overnight with gusts of 60-70mph affecting areas in the warning zones, including Scotland, parts of Northern Ireland and the far north of England, while gusts topped at more than 80mph in exposed coastal spots. The island of Tiree in the Inner Hebrides experienced 82mph winds at about 4am on Sunday, according to the Met Office.

Scotland’s environmental watchdog issued 29 flood warnings and 11 less severe flood alerts . Key Points Amber warning in force as Storm Boelo brings 80mph gusts to parts of UK 82,000 properties without power across UK List of train operators impacted on Sunday Town centre flooded as storm hits Where strong gales and rain will hit UK today In full - Storm Boelo mapped: Where strong gales and rain will hit UK today Storm Boelo mapped: Where strong gales and rain will hit UK today Met Office issues two amber ‘danger to life’ warnings as more strong gales to hit the UK Daniel Haygarth 25 October 2026 11:47 82,000 properties without power across UK More than 82,000 properties are without power as Storm Boelo continues to batter northern parts of the UK with gusts reaching 84mph.

An amber wind warning remains in place until 9pm, having activated hours after the first named storm of the season petered out from the south west. On Sunday morning, winds gusts peaked at 84mph in Argyll and Bute, 83mph in Snowdonia and 82mph in the Inner Hebrides, the Met Office said. Engineers battling severe weather have reconnected 344,900 customers to power but , Energy Networks Association said at about the same time.

Daniel Haygarth 25 October 2026 11:44 'Storm Boelo continues to bring disruptive winds in the north', Met Office says Dan Haygarth 25 October 2026 11:39 Watch: Storm Boelo leaves Scottish high street under floodwater Storm Boelo leaves Scottish high street under floodwater Dan Haygarth 25 October 2026 11:11 Flights in and out of Dublin cancelled on Sunday Dan Haygarth 25 October 2026 11:03 Dover to Calais services cancelled due to weather Dan Haygarth 25 October 2026 10:32 Liverpool to Manchester railway line blocked by fallen tree Customers encouraged not to travel due to a tree blocking the line.

Dan Haygarth 25 October 2026 10:05 In pictures: Storm leaves its mark The A82 blocked at Dumbuck Quarry due to flooding caused by storm Boelo ( Getty ) Waves crash over the promenade in Largs ( Getty ) Police road closure on the A78 near Skelmorlie after Storm Boelo passed through the area ( PA ) Flood water on the A8 in Inverclyde after Storm Boelo passed through the area. ( PA Wire ) Dan Haygarth 25 October 2026 09:54 Ferries from Belfast cancelled Stena Line ferry sailings from Belfast to Cairnryan and Liverpool on Sunday morning have been cancelled.

A message on its website says: “This sailing is cancelled due to adverse weather conditions. You can amend your booking online to an alternative sailing or route without any change fee or fare difference applied. “Please take care when amending as we may not be able to fulfil all aspects of your booking such as Cabins, Stena Plus and Pets on other departures.” Dan Haygarth 25 October 2026 09:48 Several A roads closed In a series of updates on social media, Traffic Scotland said several A roads remain closed in some areas on Sunday morning, including: – The A1 motorway is closed in both directions at Ayton due to power cables on the carriageway; – The A75 between Collin and Carrutherstown is closed in both directions due to fallen trees; – The A82 at the Bridge of Orchy is closed in both directions due to fallen trees; – The A78 Shore Road in Skelmorlie is closed in both directions due to damage to the road surface; – The A85 at Achnacloich is partially blocked in both directions; The A83 is closed in both directions at Inveraray due to a fallen tree.

Other A roads, including: the A84 at Runacraig; the A87 at Breakish; A726 at Righead Roundabout; and the A76 at Drumlanrig were closed overnight due to fallen trees, but were reopened by 8am on Sunday morning. A social media post from Traffic Scotland said: “Several trees have fallen across the trunk roads in Scotland overnight due to Storm Boelo. “Teams are working hard to deal with these incidents as quickly and effectively as possible.

Check your route to avoid disruption on the roads today.” Dan Haygarth 25 October 2026 09:22 Newer 1 / 5 Older

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What we found (2)

The Independent's live blog reports Storm Boelo's power cuts, flood warnings, road closures and travel cancellations in detail, with sourced figures from the Met Office, SEPA and the Energy Networks Association. It never tells the reader that warming makes heavy rainfall like this more frequent or more severe. One power-cut figure is garbled.

  1. Leaves out the climate link

    Serious

    “as Storm Boelo brought heavy rain and powerful winds to the country”

    Why this matters
    The words "heavy rain and powerful winds" describe the storm that put 29 flood warnings in force and a Scottish high street under floodwater. The article treats this as weather and nothing more.
    The impression it gives
    A reader comes away thinking this flooding storm is ordinary weather, with no link to a warming climate.
    The context
    Human-caused warming has made heavy rainfall more frequent and more intense. The article never says so, in this sentence or anywhere else, despite reporting flood warnings and a flooded town centre.

    How we know

    • On the recordThat warming has made hot extremes, heavy rainfall, agricultural and ecological drought, fire weather and intense tropical cyclones more frequent or more severe.ipcc.ch (opens in a new tab)
    • Checked against the whole articleIt never uses the words “warming”.
    • Elsewhere in the article“Town centre flooded as storm hits”

    Show it in the article

    Written straight

    Scotland's environmental watchdog issued 29 flood warnings and 11 less severe flood alerts as Storm Boelo brought heavy rain and powerful winds to the country. Climate change is making heavy rainfall like this more frequent and more intense.

  2. Uses figures that mislead

    Minor

    “82,6000 are still disconnected”

    Why this matters
    The figure "82,6000" is malformed. It can be read as 826,000, ten times the outage count given elsewhere in the article.
    The impression it gives
    A reader may believe more than 800,000 customers were still without power.
    The context
    The article's own key points give the number still without power as just over 82,000.

    How we know

    • Elsewhere in the article“More than 82,000 properties are without power”

    Show it in the article

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