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Update 09.00 Sun 8th Oct - Flooding focus turns north as SEPA warns communities to stay alert across Sunday

Alerts and warnings - last updated at 9am

• 14 Flood Alerts
• 53 Flood Warnings
• 1 Severe Flood Warning

Multiple Flood Warnings and Alerts are in place across Scotland as the agency continues to warn of likely impacts on Sunday and communities count the cost of Saturday’s flood damage.

Vincent Fitzsimons, SEPA’s Flood Duty Manager, said:

“It’s been a rough weekend across Scotland, with severe weather causing widespread travel disruption to road and rail networks and impacts in communities from Greenock to Aviemore.

“Our teams have been working around the clock with Scottish Government and the Met Office in the lead into and across this major weather event. We have been issuing Alerts and Warnings to communities at risk and supporting responders.

“Today the focus continues to turn to communities across the North, with a particular concern for severe flood impacts to communities along the Spey and Tay rivers. It’s a day to stay alert, not stand down. The risk to life remains.

"We’ll be issuing further updates across the day to communities across northern Scotland and our advice remains for people to keep up to date with information from SEPA and follow guidance from emergency services.”

Staying informed

• Check the latest information on SEPA's regional flood alerts and local flood warnings
• Check the latest advice on what to do to prepare for flooding
• Register for SEPA’s free Floodline message service by calling 0345 988 1188
• Check the three day Scottish Flood Forecast
• Check your ScotRail Services and road conditions
• Advice on preparing for severe weather can be found on the Ready Scotland website.

Be prepared and stay safe

• Don’t walk through flood water – 15cm of fast flowing water could be enough to knock you off your feet and hazards can be hidden under the water.    
• Drive with care, and do not travel through deep fast flowing water. It only takes 30cm of fast flowing water to move an average family sized car.    
• If you’re walking beside rivers be extra careful of wet footpaths and small watercourses.    
• Consider deploying flooding protection products if required.

What’s the difference between a flood alert and a flood warning?

We use forecast weather information provided by the Met Office combined with our own observation of rainfall and river levels and advanced hydrological modelling to provide advance warning of flooding.

• Regional Flood Alerts are early advice that flooding is possible across a wider geographical area. The purpose of the Alerts is to make people aware of the risk of flooding and be prepared. We normally issue them 12 to 24 hours in advance of the possibility of flooding.
• Flood Warnings are more locally specific and are issued for areas where we have gauges on rivers to measure the exact river height. They are issued at shorter notice when we are more certain that a specific area will be affected.