A major incident has been declared as Storm Ali batters Scotland.

A warning of threat to life has been issued for Dumfries and Galloway due to the storms, and Scottish Power said 16,000 homes were without electricity in south-west Scotland.

Police Scotland and the council have called a major incident due to the number of incidents being reported in the area.

The force said it was dealing with nearly 1200 incidents across the country.

Buildings have been damaged, bridges have been closed and trains have been cancelled.

School pupils in the area have been banned from walking home over safety fears due to the storm.

The Virtual Operations Support Team said some children had already been injured by flying debris.

Pupils will have to wait to be collected in a vehicle or until after the severe weather subsides before leaving schools, it said.

The Forth Road Bridge has been shut completely while the Queensferry Crossing has been closed to high-sided vehicles and double-decker buses.

The Tay Bridge has been shut to all traffic, with 102mph winds recorded.

Trains from Glasgow Central, Queen Street and Edinburgh Waverley have all been suspended.

Services running through areas including Glasgow, Ayr, Largs, Ardrossan, Gourock, Wemyss Bay and Edinburgh are all affected.

A section of Princes Street in Edinburgh has been closed due to loose tiles while other areas of the city have been closed.

Gusts of 78mph have been recorded in Dumfries and Galloway while winds have reached 77mph near Lanark and 72mph at Glasgow Airport.

Flights at Glasgow and Edinburgh airports have also been delayed due to the storms.

Two cars were left trapped under a tree on Sinclair Drive in Glasgow due to the storms.

Dundee's new V&A museum said no visitors would be admitted due to "exceptionally high winds at our entrance".

A Glasgow Airport spokesman said: "We've not suspended operations.

"Each aircraft has its own tolerances regarding wind, so it's down to the airline/pilot.

"We have experienced some disruption due to the high winds caused by Storm Ali and would ask passengers to check with their airlines for information on their specific flight."

Rosenborg's flight to Glasgow has been delayed by four hours ahead of their Europa League game against Celtic on Thursday.

A Rosenborg spokesman said: "We learned very early this morning from our airline company that the flight would not be able to land at Glasgow Airport due to the weather.

"We were due to arrive at 1.30pm but now we will not take off until 4pm and not arrive until 5.30pm.

"It hasn't affected our preparations too much, we know the city, we know the stadium and we have stayed at the hotel before.

"If we were going to the city for the first time it would be a lot worse."