Walkers and visitors to Stonehaven have been told to stay away from the seafront after flood damage overnight.
Waves are high as 40ft are crashing into the coastline.
The warning came from Aberdeenshire Council after rising tides wreaked havoc on the promenade and onto public roads in the area.
Flooding and debris along the harbour area have left pathways un-walkable and in places, fences have been knocked over.
Police are in attendance on the seafront.
In a post online, a spokesperson for Aberdeenshire Council said: “Stonehaven.
“Areas all along the seafront have been affected by coastal flooding overnight.
Stonehaven seafront flood damage
“We are in the process of closing this off.
“With a flood warning in place around high tide today at 1 pm, we ask that people avoid the area. ”
The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (Sepa) issued a flood warning for Stonehaven over the next three days.
In a warning, posted online, it said: “Flooding from coasts is likely in Moray Firth and on East facing coastlines on Friday and Saturday due to large waves.
“Localised property flooding, flooding of roads and disruption to travel along those coastlines is likely.”
Aberdeenshire Council said that Stonehaven was an area that has suffered from flooding for decades.
On its website, the authority said: “Stonehaven has historically suffered from flooding which affected local residences and businesses within the lower reach of the River Carron.
“Major flooding events have occurred in Stonehaven over many years, most recently in 1988, 1995, 2001, 2002, 2007, 2009 and 2012 which have caused the evacuation of nearby residents.”
It continued: “Stonehaven Flood Protection Scheme (FPS) is designed to protect homes and businesses which have previously been badly affected by flooding events around the River Carron.”
In October 2023, residents praised Aberdeenshire Council for its flood prevention scheme.
Scott Crawford, chef manager of Charles McHardy Butchers, told The P&J at the time: “We had the normal flood defences up on the doors and just making sure that everyone was cautious and safe coming into work, and didn’t take any unnecessary risks.
“The flood defences seem to have held up pretty well.”
