Storm Babet hits Stonehaven Harbour

Storm Babet hits Stonehaven Harbour. The bout of extreme weather is expected to bring severe flooding and disruption.

Hundreds of homes had been told to evacuate and emergency rescue centres were set up as Storm Babet saw “exceptional” levels of rainfall cause extensive flooding and left thousands without power.

The second named storm saw a rare red weather warning issued for Aberdeenshire, Angus, Perth and Dundee from 6pm on Thursday until noon today. It was the first red alert the UK has seen since storm Dennis in 2020 with emergency services and first minister Humza Yousaf urging people to stay at home.

Police Scotland advised against all travel to parts of Aberdeenshire covered by the red alert, with assistant Chief Constable Stuart Houston emphasises "driving conditions will be extremely dangerous.”

The warning included major flooding, landslides, the prospect of record rainfall and “a danger to life from fast flowing deep floodwater.”

Weather experts have said the extreme weather could see up to 200mm to 220mm of rainfall in some areas of eastern Scotland, an amount close to the highest ever 24-hour total for a “rainfall day.”

Winds of up to 77mph also hit parts of Aberdeenshire causing dramatic scenes at Stonehaven among other east coast towns with enormous waves crashing onto beach fronts.

About 10,000 properties across Scotland lost power due to the weather. Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) confirmed it managed to restore services to some 7,000 homes by Thursday afternoon and was “working to reconnect” the rest.

Angus Council confirmed residents in 335 homes in Brechin and a further 87 homes in Tannadice and Finavon were asked to evacuate due to risk of severe flooding. The water levels in the nearby River South Esk were forecasted to reach the top of flood defences at about 9pm on Thursday and to continue rising in the night.

Temporary rest centres opened from 3pm on Thursday afternoon for residents at Montrose Sports Centre, and Brechin and Forfar community campuses.

Angus Council warned it had “very limited sandbags” for flood prevention after road teams have been busy deploying them to resilience groups and around vulnerable areas and buildings.