The storm that started yesterday evening only got worse after midnight. The winds rose at Eoropie, a mile from the Butt of Lewis, reaching a crescendo at 5.30 am with an unofficial highest windspeed of 112.8 mph or 181 km/h. Sustained winds had steadily crept up from 80 mph at midnight to that highest reading. The effects of the storm appear to have been moderate. The gable end of a house in Leverburgh and its windows were blown in; the ferry service was severely disrupted up and down the west coast and a few bits and pieces had gone walkabout. But no casualties, fortunately. Shared what information I had with people on Facebook and Twitter, some of which even made it onto Good Morning Scotland on Radio Scotland first thing in the morning.
As the day wore on, the winds very gradually abated, only dropping below galeforce at Eoropie after 6pm this evening. The highest windspeed measured at the airport was 52 mph sustained, with a gust to 78 mph. A bad one, and the second strongest storm of the eight years I have been in this island. As recompense, we were treated to a brief flash of a colourful sunset around 4.45pm.
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