Storm cuts power to over 20,000 homes in Scotland, disrupts travel

LONDON (Reuters) - High winds battered Scotland on Thursday leaving more than 20,000 homes without power and disrupting travel with all trains canceled. Gale-force winds had hit the electricity network in the north of Scotland with the number of homes without power expected to rise, particularly in the highlands, a spokesman for SSE said. All train services in Scotland were suspended shortly after 8 a.m. local time until further notice due to debris on the tracks and Glasgow's Central Station was evacuated after part of a glass roof collapsed, ScotRail said Britain's weather office said winds of up to 116 miles per hour (187 km per hour) had slammed some areas in the Scottish highlands with strong winds forecast to continue until Thursday afternoon. Marc Becker, spokesman for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, warned of a risk of flooding in some coastal areas and Traffic Scotland advised motorists to avoid travelling in many areas, describing conditions as "extremely dangerous". (Reporting by Belinda Goldsmith; editing by Guy Faulconbridge)