Storm Isha death: Tributes to ‘gentleman’ Jimmy Johnstone, 84, killed in crash with fallen tree in 100mph winds
TRIBUTES have been paid to a much-loved "gentleman" who died after a car crashed into a fallen tree during Storm Isha.
The man named locally as Jimmy Johnstone lost his life on Sunday evening as the deadly storm wreaked havoc across Scotland.
The 84-year-old, who was a passenger in the Hyundai motor, was pronounced dead after the horror crash on the A905 at Beancross Road, Grangemouth, near Falkirk.
His local pub The Auld Vic in Falkirk took to social media to remember the pensioner who had a "zest for life".
In an emotional post yesterday, they wrote: "Very sad news today. Jimmy Johnstone tragically passed away last night.
"Everyone that knew him are saddened and devastated by his sudden passing.
"Jimmy was a beautiful man, a gentleman and genuinely one of life’s great men. He had such a zest for life and brought a wee ray of sunshine to everyone he met.
"The staff and his friends in The Vic absolutely loved him. Our thoughts go out to his loving family at this terrible time. Such a sad loss. RIP Jimmy."
Members of the public flocked to the comments to recall their fond memories of the pensioner.
One person wrote: "Such a lovely man and always smiling."
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Another said: ";So sad to hear this news, he really was a gem of a man."
A third added: "Still can't get my head around this, thinking of all the family at this very sad time."
A fourth put: "Really sorry to hear this. My only fan at the open mic on a Thursday."
Police were alerted at around 10.20pm that the tree had toppled on to the road as 99mph winds battered Scotland.
But it’s understood they left before the tragedy shortly before midnight.
Officers confirmed the vehicle’s other occupants were uninjured.
STORM ISHA DEATHS
THE bad weather has caused a series of fatal accidents.
A fallen tree led to the death of a van driver during the storm in Limavady, Northern Ireland.
In Ireland, a man in his 40s also died in a storm-related crash after his motor skidded on a flooded road in County Mayo.
A woman in her 20s, who was a passenger in a van, also died after it hit a tree in Co Louth at 1.50am on Monday.
It comes as Scots brace for even more weather misery with Storm Jocelyn set to bring gusts of 80mph.
Forecasters have issued amber and yellow weather warnings for wind covering much of the nation, together with yellow alerts for rain affecting parts of western and southern Scotland.
A yellow warning for ice has also been issued across northern and eastern parts of Scotland.
Meanwhile, ScotRail suspended services from 7pm last night and there were no rush-hour trains this morning.
Martin Thomson, national operations manager for resilience at Transport Scotland, said: "Across the wider network, we can expect to see more delays and cancellations with ferries, flights and rail from Tuesday into Wednesday morning."
TransPennine Express strongly urged passengers to avoid travelling between England and Scotland from 3pm today until noon tomorrow.
And Avanti West Coast called on people not to travel north of Preston after 3.30pm today because of Storm Jocelyn.
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The last scheduled service from London to Glasgow departs the capital at 3.30pm, calling at Preston at 5.41pm, and is "expected to be extremely busy", the operator warned.
Flights were also diverted and mid-air emergencies declared as Scots passengers were plunged into chaos yesterday.