The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Claim people could have died following ‘tsunami’
FALLS: Canyoning enthusiasts put in danger by opening of scour gate, says adventure firm boss
A “tsunami” released from a Highland Perthshire dam could have swept people to their deaths, it has been claimed.
John Mason-Strang, director of the adventure company Nae Limits, slammed Perth-based SSE for opening a scour gate at a hydro scheme above the Bruar Falls, he says without warning.
He was so concerned that he alerted the police claiming that anyone taking part in canyoning at the beauty spot – abseiling and swimming down the rapids – could have been swept away and a search was launched.
The water was manually released above the falls and was initially only a few inches in depth, but as it funnelled into the drop it grew to several metres – posing a significant danger to anyone in its path.
“My son and eight customers were out the previous day but if they had rescheduled it 24 hours they would probably have been dead, there is no doubt it is as serious as that,” he said.
“It depends on how much water they have backed up, whenever they open a scour gate we are left to its mercy.
“It is practically a tsunami, it rises by a couple of metres.”
Mr Mason-Strang said he accepted that the gate on the SSE hydro scheme on the Bruar Water had to be opened from time to time to allow maintenance work, but said his issue with the company was about communication.
He said that last year he had a productive meeting with SSE at which it was agreed that they would alert him and post warnings on social media if the gate was to be opened – neither of which happened in the most recent incident.
SSE said they would be making no comment on the allegation that the water was released without warning.
“SSE is undertaking normal annual operations and maintenance on all our assets, as in previous and future years, to keep them in a safe and operable condition,” said a spokesman.
Mr Mason-Strang said the issue needed to be resolved as the popularity of canyoning at Bruar Falls was growing with a number of companies operating there as well as independent, unrecorded, recreational users.
A Police Scotland spokesman said: “Police Scotland attended at Bruar regarding water levels. The water levels were checked and there were no concerns.”