In the Central Belt you would not have been able to move for ministers holding photo ops
The emergency response to the power cuts that left almost 100,000 Scots in the cold and dark is under scrutiny as critics say much more should have been done much quicker.
Families affected, backed by politicians, have accused energy firms of failing to admit the scale of the damage quickly enough and ministers of failing to demand a comprehensive and clear catalogue of damage and a firm estimate of how long repairs would take.
Many homes were without power for up to five days. And yesterday some were still in darkness – nine days after Storm Arwen battered the north-east and the Borders. Yesterday, power had been restored to most but not all of the 90,000 homes cut off after 90mph winds brought down trees and power lines.
It took five days for the Army to be called in to bolster the recovery and offer support to the most vulnerable and critics say the government response would have been far quicker and more impactful had the storm inflicted similar damage in the Central Belt.
Despite repeated assurances by power firms that electricity would be quickly restored, the crisis continued throughout the week. Yesterday, families in 560 homes across Aberdeenshire, Perthshire, Angus and Moray were still without power. Across the UK 9,200 homes remained cut off.
Troops were finally enlisted on Wednesday to help the recovery effort in Aberdeenshire by the Grampian Local Resilience Partnership, which is made up of councils, the police, fire and ambulance services, and other agencies. On Thursday, 146 military personnel were deployed, focusing on welfare checks in communities still badly affected.
But politicians in the affected regions questioned why it took so long. Scottish Borders Council leader Mark Rowley said: “The Army could have been of great use in the first couple of days. It would have been helpful for the Scottish Government to have recognised the national scale of the problem in those first days, and they didn’t. As usual, it was left to local authorities to pick up the pieces.
“The Scottish Government showed little or no interest in appeals we made for additional support in the first few days. To be fair, later in the week that happened, and we were able to draw on the resources of roads maintenance company Bear Scotland. But from the start it should have been acknowledged the scale was absolutely huge.”
He added: “If this had happened in the Central Belt, you wouldn’t have been able to move for Scottish Government ministers visiting, doing photo ops and tweeting about it.”
Deputy First Minister John Swinney visited the Aberdeenshire village of Monymusk on Wednesday where he apologised for the “hardship” people had experienced and said he wanted to “make sure we do everything we can in the short term to resolve those issues”.
However, Liam Kerr, Conservative MSP for No r t h East Scotland, said: “I just don’t understand why the Scottish Government didn’t say, ‘ Look, we’ve got a real problem here. Send in the troops’. The Grampian Local Resilience Partnership went direct to the Army and asked for assistance. It is quite something when the national government has abandoned the pitch and the local authority is saying we need help, please send in the Army.
“There is certainly a feeling among my constituents that had this happened in the Central Belt the SNP would have been more visible in their actions.”
Michael Marra, Labour MSP for North East Scotland, said: “Clearly the power companies have failed to understand the scale of the challenge. Far too many times in the last week they have promised residents they were only hours away from being hooked back up to the power supply.
“It is now clear the Army should have been called in much earlier to provide assistance. The Scottish Government and the local resilience group have serious questions to answer about why it took so long. Local people are rightly appalled.
“Rural areas have a right to expect their infrastructure is sound and they will receive the same treatment as anywhere else. I do think there is a feeling among the population that too many people were forgotten in the last week.”
Energy regulator Ofgem has warned it will take enforcement action over slow reconnections. Chief executive Jonathan
It is clear the Army should have been called in much earlier
Brearley yesterday told the BBC: “We are deeply concerned about customers who for over a week have been without power.
“We want to establish the facts and make sure we understand what has happened, whether the network companies have met their obligations. If they haven’t, we will take enforcement action.”
Colin Smyth, Labour MSP for South Scotland, said: “I hope one of the things Ofgem looks at is exactly how robust the network is. Although it was a severe storm, it strikes me that time and time again rural areas are hit the most. I fear there has been a lack of investment in some of the infrastructure, making it susceptible to storms like this.
“This wouldn’t have happened in Glasgow or Edinburgh.”
Police Scotland Chief Superintendent George Macdonald, of the Grampian Local Resilience Partnership, said: “Due to the challenges and uncertainty around when supplies would be fully restored, the partnership deemed it was proportionate and necessary to seek additional support from the military and we are grateful for their assistance.
“I want to reassure the community that a significant response has been provided since the beginning of Storm Arwen and will remain in place until all those affected have had full power restored.”
Mark Rough, Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks’ director of operations, said: “We have over 700 field staff carrying working with support from other network operators and contractors from across the UK and Ireland, and everyone is making a real effort to reconnect the final homes as quickly and safely as possible.”
Scott Mat hies on, planning and regulation director at Scottishpower, said: “Whilst we had boots on the ground quickly, access was significantly hampered by the amounts of significant storm debris that had to be cleared from main roads and A and B roads.”
The Scottish Government said: “Our Resilience Room, chaired by the Deputy First Minister John Swinney, has met on a number of occasions to oversee efforts and ensure every possible resource is deployed. In the aftermath of this incident, we will review the preparations for, and response to, Storm Arwen to ensure we learn from this exceptional storm.”