Clear-up under way after storms and torrential rain
A clear-up is under way after storms caused flooding and travel disruption in east and central Scotland.
The A68, which links Edinburgh with the Borders, is still closed near Fala in Midlothian after part of the road collapsed, leaving a deep hole. A 27-mile diversion in place and road contractor Amey is assessing how to make repairs. The torrential rain and thunderstorms swept across Scotland overnight between Tuesday and Wednesday. The weather is believed to have played a part in the derailment of a passenger train near Stonehaven in Aberdeenshire, killing three people. A major incident was declared in Fife, where weather conditions led to the local resilience partnership being activated. There was extensive flooding at Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy and 28 people were rescued after a landslide at Pettycur Bay Holiday Park. Caravans were evacuated and 218 people spent the night in emergency accommodation. The resilience partnership chairman, Supt Sandy Brodie, told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland programme said it had presented "a challenge" because the holiday park sits on a hillside. "After 31 years of policing you'd probably think I'd seen most things, but to be honest that's something that's a little bit out of the ordinary," he said. One of people staying at the caravan park, Glen McGill, said he had never seen a storm like it before. "We sat down and watched the storm - as you do when these things happen," he said. "But within a matter of an hour or so it began to seem fairly extreme and we saw a storm that we've never seen the likes of before." Mr McGill said the storm was over them for about five hours. "It just wasn't shifting and what made it scarier was that we started to feel vibrations," he said. "We thought they were maybe just to do with the clap of thunder being so loud, but in hindsight it was probably related to the water coursing through the soil below us." He decided it was time to get out just before he was reached by the emergency services. "We eventually headed to the door of the caravan at exactly the time the fireman was arriving to tell us to evacuate."