Scotland's weather: 'Take action now' warning as Highlands and north east face flood risk from melting snow
Alert to follow more yellow warnings for snow and ice over weekend
People across northern Scotland have been urged to take immediate action to protect their properties amid a growing flood risk from melting snow.
The alert came as a yellow extreme weather warning for snow and ice that covers most of Scotland until 3pm on Saturday will be followed by another for a similar area from 2am to 3pm on Sunday.
The Met Office said further weather warnings were possible for Sunday but temperatures would return closer to average for most of next week with “some wet and windy conditions likely for many parts of the UK”.
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency said homes, roads and land could be flooded and travel disrupted from Sunday.
Flood duty manager David Morgan said: “As temperatures rise following recent cold conditions, thaw of lying snow from Sunday onwards will increase the risk of flooding.
“With warmer air expected to persist into early next week, any remaining snow is likely to continue to melt.
“This will prolong the flood risk and increasing sensitivity of our rivers to any rainfall.”
Aberdeenshire Council also warned: “Please don’t underestimate the speed or impact of snowmelt flooding as once it begins, it may be too late to protect homes and businesses.
“Now is the time to act, and early action is essential to reduce the risk of damage.
“Communities must start to take precautionary action now - households and businesses should be taking immediate steps to make arrangements for flood protection to safeguard their own property.”
The warnings came as First Minister John Swinney said people should "remain vigilant" during a visit to a roads depot in Aberdeen on Friday.
Hundreds of schools were closed for a fifth day across the north and north east on Friday, including more than 150 in Aberdeenshire. A further 107 schools and nurseries were shut in Highland.
The Inverness-Wick/Thurso was blocked by heavy snow between Ardgay and Lairg.
Snow accumulations include 27cm at Altnaharra in Sutherland, 26cm at Loch Glascarnoch between Inverness and Ullapool, and 22cm at Durris in Kincardineshire.
The lowest temperature recorded on Thursday night was -13.3C at Braemar in Aberdeenshire, although that was far from the village’s British record low of -27.2C.
Met Office chief forecaster Steve Willington said: “Following on from a Saturday which will be largely dry away from north eastern parts of Scotland and England, a front from the west on Sunday will bring snow for parts of Scotland and northern England, with low temperatures continuing the ice risk.
“A further 2-5cm of snow is possible to accumulate at low levels within the warning area on Sunday, with 10-20cm possible over higher ground.
“With much of this falling in areas that have already seen severe snowfall, ongoing disruption is likely.”
The yellow warning until 3pm on Saturday is forecast to bring another 2-5cm of snow above 100m and 10-15cm above 300m in some areas, with ice a widespread hazard.
During Sunday’s warning, 2-10cm of snow could fall to low levels in some areas with 10-20cm likely above 200m and up to 30cm over hills, with snow drifting in strong winds.
Mr Swinney, who thanked gritter operators, transport depot staff, police and other workers, said: "It has been a really challenging period for everybody and I thank members of the public for their patience and support.
"Those who have been working very hard to clear the transport network, whether that's on the roads or the rail network, have done an incredible job to deal with intense periods of winter weather.
“And as a consequence, have done a tremendous service to people in the north-east of Scotland and in the Highlands and islands.
"I am very grateful to them for that work, and I recognise the scale and the intensity that has been put into making sure that the public could be safe, and that impacts could be minimised.
"In the days ahead I would ask members of the public to remain vigilant about the weather conditions, to pay attention to all of the warnings and to adjust their plans accordingly.”
Meanwhile, three Network Rail workers have been hailed as “heroes” for rescuing a woman and her two dogs after she fell in deep snow in an Aberdeenshire village.
Joanne Reid, 60, feared the worst after falling on Monday morning near Insch station and becoming hidden from view.
She was unable to get up due to mobility issues.
She said: “I couldn’t get up so I started to crawl towards the field, hoping there was something to help me, but I couldn’t get far.
I couldn’t see how anyone was going to find me, so I started shouting.
“Eventually after 10-15 minutes, I saw an orange jacket through the trees and the three men appeared.
“The relief was unbelievable. I burst into tears. I really believed that if I hadn’t got somebody soon, the dogs and I could’ve been dead. I was so grateful.”
The men, Darren Stalker, Stuart Fraser and Allan Rough, said: “We are just glad that the lady and her dogs are home safe and well. The weather was treacherous, so being stuck outside was certainly not ideal for her.”
Meantime, Storm Goretti has left some 52,000 people south of the Border facing power cuts.
The storm brought winds of almost 100mph after forecasters issued a rare red warning for "dangerous, stormy" winds in Cornwall.
A peak gust of 99mph was reported at St Marys on the Isles of Scilly, the highest there since 1991.
At least 69 flights were cancelled at Heathrow Airport, most short-haul British Airways services, disrupting more than 9,000 passengers.
A number of flights at Scottish airports including Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Inverness were also grounded.
Several cross-Border CrossCountry trains between Edinburgh, south west England and Wales were cancelled.
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