Scots braced for floods as storms sweep north

Published on Saturday 6 September 2008 19:36

AREAS of Scotland were braced for flooding last night as the stormy weather that has wreaked havoc in England and Wales moved north.

Most of Scotland escaped the deluge, but the south-east suffered localised flooding as rivers burst their banks, and warnings were issued by the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA).

The Borders, Edinburgh and East Lothian received up to 20mm of rainfall and north-easterly winds on Friday night and Saturday morning.

Flood warnings were issued for the Tyne at Haddington and Jed Water and Blackadder Water in the Borders.

Last night Lothian and Borders Police warned that the River Tweed was rising rapidly and had already flooded a minor road near Kelso.

The Met Office predicted continuous rainfall of 3 to 4mm an hour over high ground in the Borders last night, which threatened to cause more flooding. A spokeswoman for SEPA yesterday said: "River levels in the Borders will rise steadily through the night and could cause localised flooding in low-lying places… the rise is slow and steady, so nobody is going to get caught out.

"Vulnerable roads will be closed when it falls dark in case of overnight flooding."

East Lothian Council and Lothian and Borders Police were also keeping an eye on the River Tyne at Haddington, where dozens of riverside homes were threatened by the rising water levels.

Pat Boyle from the Met Office said: "The rain is falling on very wet ground which is saturated, so it could only be a small amount, but it causes areas to flood."

The west coast and central Scotland remained dry and bright throughout the weekend, but there were warnings of high winds in the Highlands.

In England and Wales, four people were killed in road accidents caused by the weather.