Severe flooding brings Hogmanay disruptionon December 31, 2022 at 1:29 pm

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The West Coast Mainline is closed between Carlisle and Scotland but a landslip in Fife has now been cleared.

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Travellers are facing Hogmanay disruption on Scotland’s railways after Friday’s floods.

The West Coast Mainline is closed between Carlisle and Scotland with services on other closed lines slowly being reinstated.

Three flood warnings and four alerts are in place in central and southern Scotland.

A yellow be aware warning, valid until 15:00, is in place for snow for parts of northern Scotland.

The Glasgow Queen Street to Edinburgh line had to be closed due to severe flooding but it has since reopened.

Landslip at Markinch

Image source, Network Rail

Engineers worked through the night to clear a landslip on the line just south of Markinch station in Fife.

Train passengers for services north of Edinburgh and south from Aberdeen and Inverness are currently advised not to travel.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) has confirmed that there are no longer flood warnings in place for Dumfries and Galloway after the River Nith overflowed its banks in Dumfries on Friday.

At one point on Friday Sepa had 10 regional flood alerts in place, along with 29 local flood warnings and a severe flood warning for Dumfries.

The severe flood warning that was issued for Whitesands on Friday night has been reversed although flood alerts are still in place.

The junction of Nith Place/Shakespeare Street in Whitesands was under water on Friday night

Image source, Dumfries & Galloway VOST

Sepa said levels at the River Nith were the highest ever recorded, higher than Storm Frank in 2015 and flooding in December 1982.

The flood warnings are:

  • Romannobridge to Lyne Station in the Scottish Borders
  • Rosebank in West Central Scotland
  • Carmyle in West Central Scotland

Marc Becker, Sepa’s flood duty manager said: “Across Friday we saw Scotland hit with yet another significant flood event, with southern and central Scotland heavily impacted this time in particular. This comes after recent flooding impacts in the east and north-east of Scotland in November.

“What made Friday’s event notable was not only the intense nature of the rainfall, but also the rapid and extreme rises in river levels which led, in the Nith, to the highest ever recorded river levels.

“Whilst across Hogmanay and New Year’s Day we’re seeing an improving picture, we’ll see rain, sleet and snow on higher grounds, particularly across the Bells.

“With residual impacts on the ground, particularly in Southern and Central Scotland, we’re encouraging people living, working and travelling to remain vigilant, steer clear of flood water and follow the latest information from Sepa, transport authorities and Police Scotland.”

flooding on the M9

Image source, Alamy

Cars in on the A921

Image source, Getty Images

Two yellow weather warnings remain in place heading into the New Year.

An ice warning has been issued for Grampian, Highlands, Western Isles, Orkney and Shetland from 18:00 on Saturday until 11:00 on Sunday.

An alert for snow runs from 22:00 on Saturday until 10:00 on Sunday, covering southern and central Scotland.

The Met Office said the deadly bomb cyclone that sent temperatures plunging in the US over Christmas was causing the unsettled weather in the UK.

Meteorologist Simon Patridge said the impact on Scotland would be “nowhere near as dramatic”.

Dumfries flooding
Dumfries flooding

Image source, PA Media

The Dumfries and Galloway Virtual Operations Support Team website was activated on Friday, signifying a major incident in the region.

Dumfries and Galloway Council closed The Whitesands in Dumfries to traffic from 10:00, before the River Nith burst its banks in the afternoon.

Multiple roads around the village of Glenlee between New Galloway and St John’s Town of Dalry were closed including the A762 at Waterside and Lochside Point, the A712 at Ken Bridge, B7000 at High Bridge of Ken and the A713 at Parton Mill.

Elswehere, the M74 was closed northbound at junction 13 near Abingdon due to flooding on Friday, with Traffic Scotland reporting delays of about 80 minutes in both directions.

The M9 was also closed in both directions between junctions 9 and 10, near Stirling.

Flooding in Old Kilpatrick

Image source, Maggie McGinty

Flooding on the M74 at Abington

On the roads:

  • The A77 was closed both ways at Bellfield interchange
  • The A78 was shut in both directions at the Bankfoot Roundabout, Inverkip
  • In North Ayrshire, the A78 between Hunterston and Portencross was closed for several hours
  • The M8 westbound between junctions 2 and 3 in West Lothian was affected
  • In Edinburgh, the A720 was closed at Dreghorn

Rail travel was also affected. Network Rail Scotland said more than 20 flooding issues across Scotland’s railway caused “severe disruption”.

The line at Bowling in West Dunbartonshire was completely under water. Crews managed to clear the flood and reopen the line by 12:30 on Friday.

wemyss bay line

Image source, ScotRail

A car is rescued by officers in small boats in Dunfermline

Image source, Luke Coltman

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