Storm Boelo lashes UK, cutting power and cancelling flights

LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Tens of thousands of homes were without power Sunday as Storm Boelo battered northern parts of the United Kingdom (UK) with strong winds and heavy rain, disrupting travel services. Boelo is Britain's second named storm of the season and quickly follows the first -- Storm Austen, which brought strong gusts to southern areas of the country on Friday. More than 82,000 properties had no electricity as of 8:00 am (0800 GMT), the industry body the Energy Networks Association said in an update. It added that almost 350,000 customers had been reconnected since Austen hit. An amber wind warning was in place in Scotland, where collapsed trees, fallen cables and damaged surfaces prompted road and railway track closures. Wind gusts peaked at 84 mph (135 kmh) in Argyll and Bute in western Scotland, according to the Met Office weather agency. Scotland was also under a yellow rain warning, along with northern England, with up to 80 milimetres expected in some areas, bringing a chance of flooding. Also affected was Northern Ireland, where several flights out of Belfast were cancelled. There were also cancellations to some ferry services across the Irish Sea between Belfast and northwest England. The Met warned that Boelo brings a danger to life from flying debris and crashing waves and that people should stay indoors as much as possible.