Severe weather warning

Flooding is affecting parts of Scotland, particularly in the North East, as heavy rain causes disruption across the country following an amber warning from the Met Office.

Parts of Aberdeenshire and Angus have been given severe flood warnings by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) - the highest level of risk indicating danger to life. SEPA and local resilience partners are working with responders on the ground to deploy flood defences and help focus support to those communities who will need it most. Local rest centres have been set up to support people in affected areas.

The amber warning for rain covers Grampian, Tayside, Central and Fife and is expected to stay in place until 9pm this evening. A yellow warning for rain remains in place for a large part of eastern Scotland, with disruption likely continue into the weekend.

Across Scotland heavy rain is causing disruption to the transport network. Surface water and reduced visibility is leading to difficult driving conditions, a number of rail lines are currently closed and some ferry services are cancelled or delayed. Advice remains to check with your operator to see if your service is affected. Traffic Scotland provides regular updates on the trunk road network and Police Scotland continue to warn of a high risk of disruption.

Justice Secretary and lead Minister for resilience Keith Brown chaired a meeting of the Scottish Government’s resilience committee this evening (Friday 18 November).

Mr Brown said: “The high rainfall currently being experienced in many areas is causing significant issues in some parts of the country, and is now likely to cause potentially damaging and dangerous risk of flooding in some areas.

“Flooding could happen quickly, even in areas not usually prone to flooding. Local resilience partners are working with emergency services to ensure those communities most at risk are kept safe, and urgently get the support they need.

“Please take extra care if you are out and about and do not attempt to walk or drive through flood water. The conditions have already caused disruption to the transport network, with further disruption expected - so it’s important people plan their journeys before they set off – particularly if they are looking to use the trunk roads or travel by rail.

“The Scottish Government’s resilience arrangements have been activated to ensure preparations and appropriate measures are in place, and we will continue to monitor the situation over the course of the weekend.

“We are in close contact with resilience partners, local authorities and the emergency services to ensure people in the affected areas receive the latest information, advice and support where needed.”

Vincent Fitzsimons, Flood Duty Manager for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), said:

“Heavy and persistent rain overnight has led to significant increases in river levels across the east of Scotland. We have seen almost a month’s worth of rain in some parts already this week and we are expecting around the same again over the course of Friday and Saturday in parts of Northeast Scotland.

“The highest risk is to riverside communities in parts of Aberdeenshire and Angus, with Severe Flood Warnings already issued. The worst impacts will occur between early Friday afternoon and early Saturday morning. We are working 24/7 with the Met Office and with information from SEPA's gauge network to review the flood predictions for these communities and others. This will continue until the risk is over.

“SEPA is working with emergency response partners in the areas most at risk to help them prepare and to focus support to those communities who need it most. People living and working in affected areas are advised to plan their essential journeys and consider the steps they need to take now to be prepared and to stay safe. They can also keep updated on floodline.sepa.org.uk.”

Background

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

Updates on ScotRail services and road conditions are available online.

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