A pensioner has slammed Aberdeenshire Council after he broke his ankle while clearing ice from outside his home.
Brian Gresham, from Fraserburgh, fell on Monday while salting the pavement and road on his street to help him and his neighbours get around.
But just minutes into the task, the 71-year-old slipped and badly broke his ankle.
Last night, he blamed the authority – which has already come under fire for the “worst grit job in decades” – and claimed Scalloway Park area had not been treated.
Aberdeenshire Council however insisted the road was treated on Monday and Tuesday, but accepted the pavement had only been treated on Tuesday afternoon. A spokesman stressed the road and pavement are priority three and four respectively – meaning they are done after the major routes.
Mr Gresham claimed he had seen “no sign of the gritters” in the town on Monday, however.
He said: “I did my 104-year-old neighbour’s pavement on Sunday and went out again on Monday to salt some of the pavements but when I got outside I slipped and broke my ankle – I didn’t even know your ankle could twist into that position.
“I couldn’t even get up and had to wait for the postwoman to find me and let my wife know I was hurt.
“When the ambulance came, even they were slipping about trying to get me onboard.”
Mr Gresham is now in a cast for six weeks, and must go to the surgery every day for blood thinners.
The grandad, who has lived in Fraserburgh his whole life, claimed he had never seen the town’s pavements and roads in such a bad state during a cold snap.
He said it was a “nightmare”, adding: “I’ve never seen it like this.
“It’s like an ice rink still and I can’t understand it.
“I know that money is tight for councils, but something like this shouldn’t be happening.”
His family have since complained to the council about the incident and are waiting for a reply.
Philip McKay, head of roads and landscape services, said last night: “We’re very sorry to hear of Mr Gresham’s injury and we hope that he is recovering well.
“Owing to the vastness of our roads network, we have to prioritise which roads are gritted and ploughed.
“The roads in Scalloway Park are priority three routes while the footways are priority four. Priority three and four routes are done only when priority one and two routes have been treated to a satisfactory level.
“The Scalloway Park roads were treated on both Monday and Tuesday (December 11 and 12) and the footways were done from lunchtime on Tuesday.
“The council has an obligation to take reasonable steps to protect the safety of pedestrians and vehicles over public roads. It is also the responsibility of residents to take care when they are doing their own snow or ice clearing.
“We are grateful for the occasions where people have been proactively ensuring that their street or footpath is safe for their neighbours. It does compliment our ongoing winter operations.”
Earlier this week, local councillors also criticised the council’s efforts to clear towns and villages across the north-east, claiming the the authority had been “caught short” and was failing residents.
