Families to flee The Great Crack of Pennan

Published on Wednesday 18 November 2009 21:31

THE residents of the Local Hero village of Pennan were last night told they may have to leave their homes for up to a week because of the threat of a landslide blocking the only access road to the coastal community.

The evacuation of Pennan is expected to get under way tomorrow to allow work to begin this weekend on stabilising a huge section of the cliff which towers over the village.

A huge crack, 25 yards long and a foot wide, appeared close to the top of the cliff face following the recent torrential rain in the area.

Experts brought in by Aberdeenshire Council believe the only way of ensuring the village is not left completely cut off will be to remove the hundreds of tonnes of soil, rock and rubble from the cliff face where the fissure has appeared.

The people of Pennan are no strangers to the rigours of Scotland's weather. A number were left homeless two years ago after a torrent of mud came close to engulfing the village in a series of devastating landslides.

The 22 residents who are still living in Pennan are now being advised to leave their homes while the vital safety work is carried out.

Sue Johnson, who runs the village's only bed and breakfast accommodation, said: "No-one is panicking. The last thing we need is more doom and gloom for the village.

"It's going to cause a bit of disruption to our lives, but no-one is complaining. I think it is great that the council has reacted so quickly. They have done a brilliant job and I have nothing but good to say about the council."

And she stressed: "The village itself is not at risk. If there was a landslide it would go on to the road and into the valley where there is a burn.

"It's in a different place altogether from where the previous landslips were."

Mrs Johnson, who has made arrangements to stay with a family member in Carrbridge, said her son Drew, a captain with the Royal Artillery who recently returned from a tour in Afghanistan, had been due to spend the weekend at Pennan before heading off to a new posting in Northern Ireland.

She added: "It's going to cause a bit of a problem. The timing is not very good. But we will just have to grin and bear it. It could be a lot worse."

Aberdeenshire Council infrastructure director Iain Gabriel said it was hoped work could start on the unstable cliff face as soon as Saturday morning.

The intention was to remove the hundreds of tonnes of soil, rubble and rocks that could potentially collapse and block the only access road into the village.

Mr Gabriel said: "It will be difficult because access from the top isn't easy. The bend on the road is quite tight, and getting equipment down to get the material out will also be difficult.

"It will take a few days because of the constrained nature of the location. Taking material out will be quite a challenge."

He added: "Clearly there has been movement of a fairly significant nature in the last day or two, probably because of the rain."

A council spokesman said: "We are informing residents of our proposed course of action with regards to the crack, and making it clear that during those works access to and from the village will not be possible.

"Residents will have to decide whether they wish to find alternative accommodation or stay in the village. We are not carrying out a formal evacuation."