Teen paddleboarders rescued at sea in Storm Kathleen

Four teenage paddleboarders have been rescued at sea after getting into difficulty in high winds as Storm Kathleen hit Scotland.

A lifeboat from Buckie was dispatched to aid the three girls and one boy at Cullen Bay, near Moray, at 15:45 on Saturday.

The RNLI said winds speeds were about 46mph (74kmph) at the time.

The lifeboat charity said the boat crew recovered the "very cold and relieved youngsters" from the water.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) warned of a further storm surge in coastal areas on Sunday.

The agency said 18 regional flood alerts and 42 flood warnings, external remain in place.

The RNLI said its William Blannin lifeboat arrived at the scene near Bow Fiddle rock and found two girls who had managed to stay on their paddleboard.

The other girl and boy were spotted a few minutes later. They had been in the water for more than 20 minutes with only wetsuits on.

The group, who are all understood to be teenagers, were checked by the Scottish Ambulance Service and given the all clear to be sent home.

The incident came as Storm Kathleen brought disruption to weekend travel with winds of up to 90mph battering parts of Scotland.

A Met Office yellow warning for wind was in force across the west of Scotland.

The strongest gusts were recorded in the Cairngorms, while wind speeds in coastal areas reached up to 70mph.

The RNLI urged people to always check the weather forecast carefully before venturing out on the water.

Anne Scott, lifeboat operations manager, said: "Avoid offshore winds as you can easily be blown out to sea very quickly and offshore winds will tire you quickly when trying to return to shore.

"Always wear a personal flotation device and suitable clothing for the conditions and always carry a means of calling for help."

Storm disruption continued on Sunday, with rail and ferry services affected in the west of Scotland.

Ferries from Oban, Ardrossan, Ullapool and many island services were cancelled, while others faced delays.

CalMac advised passengers to check the status of sailings, external and to allow extra time for their journey.

ScotRail said it was unable to run trains from Largs, Ardrossan and Kilwinning, and also Helensburgh and Dunbarton due to severe weather.

Sepa has said significant flooding remains possible into Monday - in particular in the Western Isles and Orkney due to high tides, surge and waves.

Janine Hensman, SEPA’s flood duty manager, said: “There is real danger to life from wave overtopping, particularly around causeways, coastal roads and paths.

"While the risk is greatest around high tide times, our message is clear - take extra care if you are near the coast at any point and stay well clear of waves and water."

Sepa said conditions were expected to ease on Sunday evening, but another weather system would bring further risk of flooding on Tuesday.

The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for rain extending from the south to north east of Scotland.