Flooded Scots hunker down as more rain forecast
The mop-up after devastating flooding continued in the Borders yesterday as 500 families in Hawick returned to their homes.
Homeowners and firms are continuing to assess the damage after torrential rain caused devastating flooding last week as forecasters warn of more downpours in the days ahead.
Scotland has endured an increasing number of flood alerts in recent years which scientists suggest may be linked to weather changes as global warming is blamed for extreme weather around the globe.
Many parts of Scotland were affected last week but the Borders endured the worst of the flooding. A major incident was declared as rivers burst their banks and bridges were swept away.
Annan’s historic footbridges – the Diamond Jubilee Bridge, dating from 1897, and the Cuthbertson Memorial Bridge, built in 1957 to honour the town’s war dead – suffered extensive damage. At Brydekirk, near Annan, Sepa officials recorded river levels not witnessed for 50 years.
While the Borders and Dumfriesshire experienced the worst of the conditions, persistent downfalls have continued over the weekend, moving to the Central Belt and beyond.
The Clyde burst its banks near Symington, Lanarkshire.
Rail lines have been badly hit, with journeys between Dumfries and Carlisle halted. Stretches of rail track between Hartwood and Wishaw in Lanarkshire were also affected, and there was disruption between Glasgow and Edinburgh.
With no let up in rainfall, the north-east is likely to suffer disruption.
Forecasters warn of further flooding chaos with a number of Met Office yellow warnings issued. Alerts remain in place for Dumfries and Galloway until tomorrow.
Weather warnings are in place for the South of Scotland until 6am tomorrow.
And a separate warning was issued yesterday for Aberdeenshire, Moray and Angus.