Scottish homes facing no power for a week after Storm Arwen

Some homes left without power following the "catastrophic damage" caused by Storm Arwen last week may not be reconnected until Friday, an electricity company has said.

Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) has reconnected more than 120,000 customers since Friday's storm, but 6,500 remained without power on Wednesday.

Graeme Keddie, of SSEN, said the main villages have been reconnected but that for "localised faults" power is not expected to be restored until Friday.

He apologised to any customers affected and said the company is doing all it can to restore power "as quickly as possible".

Mr Keddie said the storm had caused "devastation on parts of the network", particularly in Aberdeenshire, where 4,000 customers remain without power.

Thousands still without electricity

The SSEN has estimated 9,500 customers currently off supply. This includes customers in the following regions:

Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire: 5721

Moray: 1526

Angus: 1423

Perthshire: 578

Stirlingshire: 252

SSEN fully appreciates the challenges being faced by customers who have been off supply since the start of the storm and whilst its teams continue to carry out repairs to damaged electricity infrastructure and restore power to the remaining homes,

"SSEN is actively encouraging all customers who remain off supply to take advantage of enhanced welfare provisions.

If any customer is without power and is unable to make alternative arrangements to stay with family or a friend, SSEN will reimburse all reasonable costs for alternative accommodation.

Customers who can coordinate this themselves are encouraged to do so and send receipts to SSEN for reimbursement.

Anyone who may need support in arranging alternative accommodation should call SSEN’s contact centre on 105.

Customers unable to access the company's welfare facilities for free hot food and drinks can also claim the cost of takeaways or meals from local establishments, up to £15 per person.

SSEN managing director Chris Burchell said: "The impact of Storm Arwen has caused catastrophic damage to the electricity network across the north-east of Scotland and is the most significant event we have ever had to deal with in the area in a generation.

"I would like to thank our customers who have shown great resilience, patience and understanding since the impact of Storm Arwen, and we fully recognise that urgency of the situation for those who continue to remain off supply.

"I would like to personally apologise to all customers who have been impacted and would like to reassure everyone still off supply that our teams are working extremely hard to reconnect them as soon as possible."

Energy Secretary Michael Matheson said the Scottish Government has been offering help through co-ordination arrangements.

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