Waves crashing over sea defences caused flooding on the Moray Firth coast yesterday amid warnings more bad weather is on the way.
Police closed the West Beach car park in Lossiemouth after water poured over the walls, bringing with it stones and all manner of other debris.
The closure came while weather warnings for heavy rain were issued across the north and north-east.
Alerts remain in force today for Aberdeenshire, the west coast and the Western Isles due to forecasts of high river levels and surface water that could affect roads and low-lying land.
⚠️Yellow rain warnings updated ⚠️
Yellow warning for rain for parts of Scotland until 09:00 Tuesday
Yellow warning for rain for parts of Northern Ireland until 03:00 Tuesday
Latest info 👉 https://t.co/QwDLMfRBfs
Stay #WeatherAware pic.twitter.com/9WfC4QZ1L5
— Met Office (@metoffice) October 19, 2020
Yesterday’s flooding in Lossiemouth forced the beachfront Ponderosa cafe to close as its access road was submerged – making it impossible for customers to access.
Manager Marlene Retson said: “We were fine and the water didn’t reach quite as far as us, but we just took the decision to close because it wasn’t safe to access the café through the car park.
“My husband went down as usual at 8am and discovered the road had been closed.
“Hopefully it will get cleared up and we’re only shut for the one day. We’ve been closed enough due to Covid-19 this year, we don’t want to be closed due to water.”
CalMac ran amended timetables from Oban and the Western Isles yesterday due to tidal conditions.
Disruption on some routes is expected to continue into today, with the Lismore to Oban sailing already cancelled.
ScotRail also imposed a 40mph limit on parts of its Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh and West Highland lines due to heavy rain.
The restriction is expected to be in force until at least this morning.
The A83 Rest and Be Thankful was also closed yesterday as a precaution, with traffic diverted onto the Old Military Road.
There will also be 40mph speed restrictions at certain points on the Inverness – Kyle line and the West Highland Line. We aren't changing the timetable on these routes but ask that you check your journey before departing for the station.
— ScotRail (@ScotRail) October 18, 2020
A Met Office warning for heavy overnight rain spanning Lochaber, Skye and Oban remains in force until 9am today.
Meanwhile, Sepa has urged people to “remain vigilant” due to forecasts of heavy rain in Aberdeenshire as well as on Lewis and Harris.
Difficult driving conditions are expected across both areas, with isolated island properties said to be at particular risk.
The Met Office warning has highlighted the risk of travel disruption and flooding today.
It adds: “There is a small chance homes and businesses could be flooded, causing damage to some buildings.
“Where flooding occurs, there is a slight chance of delays or cancellations to train and bus services.
“Spray and flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and some road closures and there is a small chance some communities could become cut-off by flooded roads.”
More rain is forecast across the north and north-east through Wednesday and overnight into Thursday.
