Royal praise for Ballater residents battered and flooded by storms
THE Queen has praised the residents of Ballater for their response to severe flooding last December.
Some 600 homes and 100 businesses were devastated when the River Dee burst its banks and swept through the Aberdeenshire village and surrounding areas amid Storm Frank.
During her annual stay at nearby Balmoral, the Queen travelled to Ballater to meet locals and hear about the ongoing recovery effort.
She arrived in Bridge Street and visited a row of shops which have recently reopened, including HM Sheridan butchers which supplies meat to Balmoral.
Co-owner John Sinclair said: “We lost all stock and machinery under about 3ft of water. There was nothing left.
“Luckily, through staff work and good insurance, we managed to get going again and reopen in about 12 weeks, but it wasn’t easy.
“The first few weeks everyone stuck together and that’s something the Queen seemed to know about. She was really impressed with the way it’s been turned around and she was full of praise for all the help from everywhere, as we all are.”
The Queen also visited a craft shop, a book store and an architects office, before heading to Glenmuick Church in the centre of Ballater to meet people whose homes were flooded.
She also met community members who played a crucial role in the response to the crisis, including representatives from Police Scotland, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, the Rotary Club, Braemar Mountain Rescue Team and Aberdeenshire Council.
Josephine Hazley’s family is one of about 30 who have still not been able to return to their homes.
She said: “We go through spells of feeling quite low because we would have loved to be back in our family home for Christmas, but that’s not going to happen.
“We have to be realistic and I try to be patient and tolerant and remember that there were people affected right across the country.”
The Duke of Rothesay was staying at Balmoral when the floods hit and consoled those affected in the aftermath.
He contributed to a fundraising drive to rebuild the caravan park and is now supporting the redevelopment of the town, with the relaunch of The Rothesay Rooms restaurant.
Meanwhile, wild weather from the Caribbean will deliver Scotland’s first storm of the autumn, bringing winds gusting to 70mph tomorrow.
Twin tropical storms – Karl and Lisa – failed to make landfall in Florida and Bermuda before veering north west towards the UK earlier this week.
It has created what weather men call “large thermal contrasts” between here and the Caribbean, which fuel deep depressions arriving close to our shores.
The Met Office said Karl was due to sweep in last night, bringing a spell of windy conditions today, but greatest concern centres on the arrival of tropical storm Lisa tomorrow.
Winds gusting to 70mph are expected to strike north western parts from early morning, causing travel disruption, downing tree branches and the possibility of structural damage to property.