A north-east councillor has urged the Scottish Government to help with the cost of repairs for damage caused by floods in Aberdeenshire.
People across the region are still dealing with the damage caused by flash-flooding at the weekend.
Residents from Macduff, Turriff, Banff and surrounding villages were among those to be hit the hardest by the torrential downpour.
Councillor John Cox has now called on the Scottish Government to help with the significant cost of repairs.
He said “The flash floods are hopefully a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence, because I’ve never seen floods as bad as this.”
“Repairing the damage will take some time and the scale and cost of the damage are currently being assessed. I hope the Scottish Government will assist with the cost of the repairs, as this is not just a local issue, but a regional one.”
Mr Cox also shared his “appreciation to the officers and council staff who were out on the day doing what they could to help individuals and wider community.”
Off shore worker James Thomson from Macduff returned home from work to discover that his property had been severely affected by the deluge.
He said: “I came back this morning to find the entire downstairs of my house had been damaged by flood water. I’ve never known flooding to be this bad here.”
“We’re just really unlucky that our house sits in front of where the drain is on the main road. Within 15 to 20 minutes, the flood water built up really quickly.”
Although the worst of the rain has passed, brighter spells aren’t in the pipeline. Met Office meteorologist Alex Burkill said: “Through this week, there will be some showery outbreaks of rain, but nothing as heavy or persistent as we have seen recently.
Head of roads for Aberdeenshire Council, Philip McKay, said: “Bridges engineers have been out again today to carry out further inspections and have closed another one of our smaller bridges, which brings the current total up to seven.
“The closure that is currently causing us the most concern is the Plaidy Bridge which was swept away and as a result has blocked access to three properties.
“There is a track which would allow for vehicular access into the affected properties and our teams are currently working to bring that track up to a standard that will allow it to be used by cars. We are also prioritising work around the King Edward to ensure that we can restore ease of access for local businesses and residents.
“Teams from across the council have been out today helping with the clean-up and updating us with any further damage they encounter.
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our staff who have been out over the weekend working hard to keep people safe.”
