Scotland facing more rain as flood-hit communities count the cost
Parts of Scotland are facing another day of rain as flood-hit communities begin to assess the toll of the severe weather.
Parts of Scotland are facing another day of rain as flood-hit communities begin to assess the toll of the severe weather.
A Met Office warning remains in place for Aberdeenshire which has seen some of the worst damage caused by extreme water levels.
The local council said river levels have peaked and are slowly falling but many residents in Ballater and Aboyne remain in alternative accommodation and much work has to be done to repair travel routes in the area.
Deputy First Minister John Swinney has announced that more funding will be made available to help the hardest-hit communities get back on their feet.
Aberdeenshire Council chief executive Jim Savege said plans were in place for the repair of roads and structures as the north east begins its recovery.
He said: Despite the ongoing weather challenges we've made good steps forward with our partners in terms of carrying out repairs to re-open key transport routes.
We've also been speaking with local businesses in Aboyne and Ballater to look at how we can support their recovery.
We've had positive discussions with the Scottish Government over access to funding to help us progress repairs, and we will be having ongoing conversations about how we can help minimise flood risk in a number of communities in the future.''
Work has begun to fix the Invercauld Bridge on the A93 at Braemar which is expected to re-open in a fortnight.
The A93 at Micras remains unpassable following the collapse of a large section of the road and there are plans to have a temporary diversion in place within the next 10 days, the council said.
In Argyll and Bute, efforts are continuing to make the A83 at the Rest and Be Thankful safe for travel, with specialist teams preparing to blast a 150-tonne boulder sitting around 175m above the carriageway.
A yellow weather warning remains in place in Tayside, Fife, the Lothians and Dumfries and Galloway throughout today and the Scottish Environment Agency said more than 20 areas are still at risk of flooding.
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said it received 350 flooding-related calls from December 30 to January 5.