The north was counting the cost of Storm Abigail last night – and was braced to be hit by Hurricane Kate today.
High winds and heavy rain swept over the region on Thursday night and Friday morning.
The storm – which was the first in the UK to be given an official name – was deemed “quieter than expected”, but hundreds of people were still left without power.
The weather caused a spate of power cuts, with more than 30 high voltage faults reported across the Western Isles, Skye, Colonsay and Argyll.
But Scottish Hydro Electric Power Distribution (SHEPD) insisted that its network held up well to Abigail as it faced winds of more than 80mph and a number of lightning strikes.
Last night the company said that power had been restored to more than 20,000 properties.
Engineers had worked late into the night and started at first light to restore power and to assess any damage caused by the storm.
The majority of those left without power throughout yesterday afternoon were in the Western Isles, Shetland and Colonsay.
Dale Cargill, director of customer services at SHEPD, said: “We would like to thank our customers impacted by Storm Abigail for their patience while we restored their power.
“We apologise to the customers who are still without power and our engineers are working hard to get them reconnected.”
A spokesman for police in the north said that they had received a “low volume” of weather related calls and no reports of structural damage as a result of the storm.
A fire service spokeswoman said that the most notable incident they had been called to was a shed door being blown off its hinges in Ripley Place in Stornoway.
All schools in the Western Isles and Shetland remained closed yesterday as a precaution.
CalMac sailings remained disrupted, with some routes running a reduced service, while others were remained cancelled yesterday afternoon.
Bear Scotland, who manage the trunk road network, said that they had a “quieter night” than expected, with staff being called to a few minor flooding incidents and remove some debris as a result of the wind.
However, the company and Highland Council were forced to call out their gritters after the aftermath of Abigail brought snowfall to many higher parts.
Among the routes affected were the A9 Inverness to Perth road at higher points such as Slochd and Drumochter, while the ski road to CairnGorm Mountain was also affected.
Weather warnings covering Storm Abigail were removed earlier than expected yesterday morning as the winds blew through.
However, further bad weather was expected this weekend as the remnants of Hurricane Kate cross the Atlantic, bringing winds and gusts of up to 55mph along the Scottish and Irish coasts.
The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for rain covering parts of Argyll and the south-west Highlands between 3pm today and 10pm tomorrow.
The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency has issued an early flood alert for Argyll, warning of potential issues from Saturday afternoon onwards.