Woman in 'critical condition' in hospital after being rescued from flood water
Last updated 31st Dec 2022
A woman is fighting for her life in hospital after being rescued from flood waters in the Borders.
Emergency services raced to the scene in Walkerburn in the early hours of this (Saturday) morning following reports two people had become trapped.
It's understood they had tried to cross the bridge over the River Tweed to access the back road, between Peebles and Yair, after the A72 was blocked.
According to local eyewitnesses, an air ambulance from Prestwick had to land at the primary school in Innerleithen due to the height of the water.
One woman was rushed to Borders General Hospital, while the other was airlifted to the Royal Infirmary in Edinburgh, where she remains in a critical condition.
Two fire crews and two water rescue teams - from Marionville Fire Station in Edinburgh, and Hawick - responded to the call for help at 00.31am, and were stood down at 3.01am.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Around 12.20am on Saturday, 31 December, 2022, police were called to reports of people within flood waters at Walkerburn, Scottish Borders.
“Two women were rescued by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. One woman remains in a critical condition in Edinburgh Royal Infirmary.”
A mop-up operation is getting underway after a prolonged spell of torrential rain left a number of homes and businesses under water.
Peebles suffered its worst flooding in almost a decade after the River Tweed burst its banks.
The town's resilience group opened the Burgh hall to offer residents support, while the local branch of Costa Coffee also opened late amid concerns for stranded motorists.
Co-ordinator Paul Spence said: "Sadly the water managed to surprise us again. The original peak was expected around 3pm, and, at 1pm, it hadn’t even touched the path. However, an hour later, it was hitting the road on Tweed Green and, by 3pm, had submerged cars."
A total of 17 flood warnings were issued for the Borders following heavy rain overnight - which led to flooding misery across the region. And motorists were advised not to travel unless necessary.
In Hawick, contractors worked round the clock to plug gaps in the town's flood defence scheme to stop the River Teviot bursting its banks.
But, with the £92 million project not due to be completed until next year, they couldn't stop flooding in Lower Mansfield, which left the town's football club under water.
Click on our video below to view the scenes from Hawick...
Tweeddale councillor Robin Tatler told us: "It has been a very close call. The river (Tweed) has been almost as high as it was in 2015.
"It does appear that all the personal flood protection measures have worked, although unfortunately there does seem to be some properties flooded in the Tweed Green/Walkershaugh area."
Mr Tatler, who praised Scottish Borders Council and the emergency services for their support, added: "This is just more evidence that we are going have flooding on a regular basis in the coming years, and we desperately need more permanent flood protection measures in Peebles. And that's something I will be continuing to campaign for."