Motorists were warned to move their cars away from the River Dee as Storm Brendan continued to lash the region and caused the expanse to burst its banks yesterday.
Aberdeen City Council closed off a stretch of Riverside Drive from the King George VI bridge to Queen Elizabeth Bridge – and urged drivers to shift their vehicles – before the river overspilled and sent water streaming onto the road at about 4pm.
The authority also handed out sandbags to properties thought to be at risk of flooding, as the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (Sepa) issued warnings across the north-east.
Ryden employee Martin Paton looks after buildings in the area for the landlord, and was out monitoring the situation after becoming increasingly worried about the flooding.
He said: “The council came down here earlier with sand bags but we haven’t had to use them yet, they don’t want the flood to get worse then people getting stuck.
“Most of the people that work down here are used to it. Years ago the street flooded to the point of not even being able to get through.
“What happens is the water from the river comes up through the drains first, and then comes up over the banks.”
Anna Wilson was walking her dog Clyde down their usual route by the river and had to wade through the water to get past.
She said: “It’s funny because me and my partner were saying the other day that we wondered how high the river could get when the tide comes in.
“My brother was staying at one of the bed and breakfasts nearby on Monday and they were up the full night worrying because they didn’t know if they were going to get moved.”
The Sepa website has warned that the flood alert for Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire would be in place until further notice.
A Met forecaster said that rain and wind would continue across the north-east.
He said: “We’ll have gusts up to 40, 50 mph and we will see some pretty heavy showers with the wind and the rain making it a cold-feeling day.”
