Severe weather impacts being monitored

A further meeting of the Scottish Government’s Resilience Room (SGoRR) was held this afternoon, Sunday 8 October, to assess the latest impacts of the weekend’s severe rainfall across the country.

The meeting was chaired by Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs Angela Constance and attended by Transport Secretary Màiri McAllan, Transport Minister Fiona Hyslop and key responder agencies.

Although conditions are improving, river levels are continuing to rise and the overall flood risk is high. A Met Office yellow warning of rain is in place until 7pm this evening and a further yellow warning of rain has been issued for parts of western Scotland for Tuesday.

Multi-agency resilience arrangements have been stood up in the north and west of the country to co-ordinate the on-the-ground response and support anyone affected by flooding and severe weather.

The road and rail network remains disrupted across the country on Sunday and the advice is to travel with caution.

Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs Angela Constance said:

“The rainfall we have seen over Scotland this weekend has been extreme, causing significant disruption –particularly in the west and north of the country. These impacts are ongoing, and I want to put on record my thanks to all the staff and volunteers responding across the country.

“The flooding risk remains a key concern over the next few hours and days, with extremely high river levels and saturated ground. Our multi-agency response teams stand ready and prepared to respond to any flooding incidents. Some local councils have also set up rest centres in their areas.

“Travel disruption has continued on Sunday and the priority is now to restore normality as far as possible by Monday morning. I would, however, urge anyone planning to travel over the next few days to do so with caution.”

Head of Transport Resilience (Operations) at Transport Scotland Stein Connelly said:

“It’s been an extremely challenging 72 hours, with perhaps some of most difficult conditions we’ve experienced since the Beast from the East.

“I would like to thank the public for their patience and for heeding police travel advice and driving to the conditions. I also want to express our thanks to our operating companies and staff who have worked during horrendous conditions to get the network back up and running.

“In terms of Argyll, the area around the A83 Rest and Be Thankful saw a month’s worth of rainfall, around 160mm, fall over 36 hours. The catch pits and fences have ensured only a small amount of debris has reached the road at the Rest and Be Thankful itself. Safety inspections are now underway, and teams are on site to begin clear-up operations once it is deemed safe to do so.”

Police Scotland Assistant Chief Constable Tim Mairs said:

“Communities across Scotland have dealt with some of the most challenging conditions they have faced and I would like to thank the public for their co-operation and for sticking to the travel advice in place to keep people safe.

“While the picture is gradually improving, we are still dealing with flooding, a number of road closures and hazardous driving conditions due to surface water so I would remind people to please exercise caution on the roads.

“The situation in Argyll and Bute remains extremely challenging, with a number of main routes closed. In that area I would urge people to consider if their journey is really necessary or if it can be delayed until conditions improve further.

“If you need to travel, please drive to the conditions and take extra time for your journey.”

Background

UK weather warnings can be viewed on the Met Office website.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) issues flood alerts and warnings for Scotland. View the latest updates on their website.

BEAR Scotland manages and maintains the trunk roads in Scotland on behalf of Transport Scotland. For updates on the A83 Rest and Be Thankful, visit the BEAR Scotland website.

Updates on ScotRail services and road conditions are available online. ScotRail services will remain disrupted through Sunday. While the operator is optimistic about restoring normal services on Monday, Network Rail safety teams must wait until flood waters subside to inspect bridges. The greatest risk to a normal restart on Monday is on the Highland Main Line and the Perthshire areas where floodwaters remain high, so passengers whose Monday journey runs between Perth and Inverness or Perth and Stirling are urged check before leaving home tomorrow.

Advice on preparing for severe weather can be found on the Ready Scotland website.