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Coastal areas put on flood alert

East coast communities have been advised to take action to try to protect their homes.
East coast communities have been advised to take action to try to protect their homes.

Flood alerts have been issued for coastal areas still recovering from severe weekend storms.

Heavy rain and strong winds are also expected to hit central Scotland over the next two days.

Gale-force winds and high tides forced the evacuation of dozens of people from their homes and caused millions of pounds worth of damage in the east of the country on Saturday and Sunday.

Ports and flood defences were damaged in Aberdeenshire and Berwick in what the environment minister described as a “perfect storm” of low pressure, high tides and gales.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) is now warning of potential flooding throughout today and tomorrow.

The Met Office has amber “be prepared” weather warnings in place for central Scotland over the next two days while yellow “be aware” warnings cover much of the rest of the country into the weekend. Snow could fall in the highest areas.

Sepa hydrology manager Vincent Fitzsimons said: “There is a coastal flood risk for the latter part of Thursday and throughout Friday for the north and east coastlines.

“Areas affected last weekend could again be affected and waves of around five metres are possible throughout these areas, with potential for larger waves from Stonehaven northwards to Orkney.

“Elsewhere, heavy persistent rain and gale force south-easterly winds could affect the Southern Uplands and areas around the central belt such as Stirlingshire, Tayside and Angus.”

During the storm on Friday, a crewman aboard North Sea stand-by vessel the Vos Sailor died after the boat suffered serious damage, and 11 others had to be winched to safety.

About 60 people were evacuated from properties in Stonehaven and Peterhead and harbour walls and some commercial properties were badly damaged along the east coast.

Aberdeenshire Council is urging people to avoid harbour areas over the next couple of days if possible.

Sandbags have been distributed in Stonehaven and Peterhead areas where millions of pounds worth of damage was caused by the weekend storms, the council said.

Environment minister Paul Wheelhouse said: “With heavy and persistent rain forecast for Thursday and Friday, the Scottish Government’s resilience team is closely monitoring developments to deliver a co-ordinated response.

“Ministers are being kept abreast of the situation I am speaking to Sepa today to discuss the information that Sepa is providing to the public and emergency responders, and to hear first hand what the potential impacts may be.

“As the exceptional weather over last weekend showed us, it is important that the public stay vigilant and take appropriate precautions.

“I would urge the public to keep up to date on the latest flood updates from Sepa using Floodline on 0845 988 1188 , the Traffic Scotland website and also to listen to their local radio station for updates from the police and local authorities as circumstances could quickly change.”

* For a special look at the difficulties families are facing securing flood-damage payouts from insurers, see Thursday’s Courier.