The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Tanker comes a cropper on icy Perthshire road
A gas tanker overturned near the village of Balgowan yesterday, with icy conditions blamed. Picture: Phil Hannah. Tanker filled with propane flips over
Icy conditions were blamed after a gas tanker containing thousands of litres of propane overturned on a Perthshire road.
The incident happened south of Balgowan, which is about eight miles from Perth, lying between the A85 road to Crieff and the A9 south.
The accident happened at around 7.45am yesterday and emergency services sped to the scene but fortunately the driver had escaped without injury.
Police Scotland said that it had been a “slow speed” accident and no risk was posed to the public.
As a precaution Scottish Fire and Rescue units from Auchterarder and Perth attended and helped to manage an oil spillage.
The single vehicle accident happened near to Ross Farm Steading and the road between Balgowan and the Roman Road was closed until the vehicle was recovered.
Local people voiced their anger that the road had not been gritted and claimed it had been “a lethal ice rink for days”.
Early road conditions across large parts of Perthshire yesterday proved challenging with rain falling and then freezing due to low temperatures.
Conditions improved as the day went on though the Met Office predicted sub zero conditions overnight which could result in icy patches and freezing fog this morning.
The better long term news is that from tomorrow onwards Tayside in general will enjoy milder weather.
Until that comes to pass pedestrians have been urged to take great care as a large number of people have come to grief on slippy pavements, resulting in a surge of people presenting at A&E in Ninewells and Perth Royal Infirmary, many with broken bones.
“We would advise people who do need to venture out when the weather is wintry to dress warmly, wear sensible shoes with a good grip and to take care when walking on icy surfaces,” said a spokesperson for NHS Tayside.
To relieve pressure NHS Tayside is asking people to only attend accident and emergency departments with emergency conditions, with a reported one in four of the patients who could have received treatment more appropriately from their own GP, community pharmacist or local minor illness and injuries unit.