Storm Georgina wreaked havoc across the Highlands and Moray yesterday.
At midday, a lorry driver escaped unhurt after crashing into a barrier on the A9 Dornoch Bridge when the vehicle overturned in high winds, forcing the road to close for about three hours.
A Bear Scotland spokesman said the lorry collided with a temporary parapet on the bridge which was there as part of ongoing £1 million improvement works.
Met office meteorologist Helen Roberts said that gusts of 66mph had been clocked in and around Lossiemouth and that there had been heavy rain moving in as part of the storm.
In Lochaber, forecast 90mph winds resulted in a search being called off for a missing hillwalker on Ben Nevis. The man is understood to have fallen more than 1,600ft on the UK’s largest mountain.
Twenty-one of CalMac’s 27 ferry routes were also disrupted yesterday.
Gusts of up to 66mph forced sailings between Mallaig and the small isles to be cancelled, as were sailings between Mallaig and Armadale.
Six areas across the Highland were on flood alert last night: Strathglass, Moy Bridge, Spey Dam, Newtonmore and Kingussie, Aviemore and Dalfaber, Strath Oykel.
Flood alerts were also issued for Easter Ross and the Great Glen and in Findhorn, Nairn, Moray and Speyside.
Cairngorm Mountain was closed yesterday with winds gusting 80mph at the top station, while Lecht was also closed later in the morning due to high winds.
Met Office forecaster Craig Snell said that the highest recorded ground level wind speed in the Highlands was 85mph in South Uist.
He said: “Winds really did whip up in the north-west Highlands. We have had several trees down in places.”
Mr Snell added that the combination of snowmelt and rain has sparked flood warnings, and warned that heavier rain could arrive in the second part of the weekend and cause more flooding issues next week.
It also emerged yesterday that the rail line between Fort William and Mallaig is expected to reopen on Monday once engineers have completed repairs to damage caused by a 1,000 tonne landslip near Glenfinnan.
A Network Rail spokesman said work has started to dig out the derailed ScotRail train from the mud.
He said it will be “rerailed” using special machinery before completing work to clear the tracks.
Engineers will also install extra drainage in the area and engineers will undertake further work to secure the slope above the line.
