Flood-hit Angus residents are facing many months out of their homes with some still living in fear of a devastating repeat of the end-of-year disaster.
Across the district the clean-up is now under way in earnest in the wake of Storm Frank and its aftermath which left a trail of costly damage in communities stretching from the Sidlaws all the way to the border with Aberdeenshire.
However, recriminations remain over what led to the deluge in some of the flood-hit areas, and residents living beside the A94 Glamis to Forfar road have pledged to continue to press the local authority over the cause of the flooding which has destroyed their lives.
The group of roadside homes at Castleton Cottages was deluged for the first time in living memory and resident Bill McIntosh fears he could be out of his home for around nine months.
Wrecked furniture and personal possessions lie strewn outside the properties and a salvage squad is now working to recover what it can from the 63-year-old electrical contractor’s home.
“The field behind the houses floods, but in 32 years it’s never even reached my doorstep,” said Bill. “On the Sunday night I went to my bed around 10pm with no panic about flooding because we don’t flood here.”
That illusion was shattered at 3.30am when his doorbell rang and Bill stepped out of bed into several inches of water.
He was then met by a fireman asking if he wished to be evacuated.
“I stayed put, but the next day I went to Alyth and the water level rose six inches in an hour,” Mr McIntosh added.
He is now with his parents while insurance experts sort out the mess,
But the residents continue to blame the combination of Angus Council digging tracks in the hillside south of the row of houses and the blocking up of a natural soakaway in a wood east of their homes for the deluge.
A spokesman for Angus Council said: “The weather brought with it very real challenges.
“This included the Eassie area, where exceptional quantities of surface water running off neighbouring fields contributed to flooding. We have since moved from a response footing into a period of clean up, repair and recovery. The council is inspecting and repairing its road network and prioritising repairs.”