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Mearns businessman hit by flooding calls on council chief to resign

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A Mearns businessman hit twice by flooding in Stonehaven has called for the chief executive of Aberdeenshire Council to resign.

“The council has failed us,” John Briggs told chief executive Colin Mackenzie.

“We have no confidence in you any more, and what’s more our insurance companies won’t insure us any more because they have no confidence in you either.”

His outburst was applauded by a hall packed with more than 400 people for a meeting with council officials and other agencies to discuss the floods that struck the town twice last month.

Scores of people are still either unable or unwilling to return to their homes, and heard it could take at least four years to get a flood alleviation scheme in place to protect them.

Many homes and businesses were uninsured because companies had refused to cover them following similar floods in 2009. Persian rug specialist Mr Briggs has owned a shop on the banks of the River Carron for 20 years.

He lost tens of thousands of pounds worth of stock in the 2009 flood and has now installed a pump to help get rid of excess water.

He said it was insulting for Mr Mackenzie to say he understood the community’s feelings of helplessness, anger and frustration.

Mr Mackenzie dismissed calls to resign and revealed he had been flooded three times in a previous home.

Mr Briggs demanded a public inquiry.

He said: “The council meeting was a waste of time. Nobody is feeling any better, or has any confidence that anything is going to be done.

“Most of what we were told about how high the water rose and how quickly we already knew. People are really frustrated. It’s terrible to be too frightened to go home. Now any time it rains people are anxious.

“There are all sorts of issues that could prevent the £6 million flood prevention scheme the council are planning. They could be doing something now, at very little cost in comparison, such as calling in engineers and hydrologists to find individual solutions to making homes safer, such as installing flood gates or underfloor pumps. The time to do that is now when the floors are up.

“Mr Mackenzie is the driving force behind this council, which has been caught napping. I feel something radical needs to happen for people to feel the council is capable.”

Mr Mackenzie pledged close links would be forged with the Stonehaven Flood Action Group of concerned residents who have been affected by flooding.

He also committed to appoint a lead officer to take responsibility in consultation with the local community for the work towards implementing a flood prevention scheme.