A total of 134 personnel from across the services have been deployed to the Grampian region to check on vulnerable people in their homes and to conduct door-to-door checks on over 4,000 homes.
The military will also provide welfare and humanitarian support for remote communities and are on standby to deliver further support and vital supplies if needed.
Teams of 10 will deploy to remote communities across the region who have been impacted by the loss of power and water following the storm.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: “We are always ready to provide extra support to civil authorities across the UK in their time of need and it’s great to see units based in Scotland supporting their local communities.
“Our dedicated Armed Forces will conduct door-to-door checks on people in their homes, providing essential support to those impacted by Storm Arwen.”
Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said: “Once again our fantastic British Armed Forces have stepped up to support communities in times of need.
“As well as having been front and centre of the COVID-19 recovery efforts, I’m very pleased they are also able to help those in the Grampian region suffering disruption caused by Storm Arwen.
“We are incredibly fortunate in the UK in having such committed, skilled and willing military personnel to support us in such challenging times.”
There are thousands of military personnel on standby to support resilience tasks across the UK including the response to the coronavirus. There are over 300 personnel currently supporting health boards in Scotland with the vaccine rollout and the Scottish Ambulance Service.
Locations who will benefit from military assistance include Aboyne, Alford, Banchory, Banff, Ellon, Fraserburgh, Huntly, Inverurie, Peterhead, Stonehaven, Turriff and Westhill.
This support has been provided through a Military Aid to the Civilian Authorities request which is the official process for MOD to provide assistance to other government departments and civil authorities for responding to emergencies, maintaining supplies and essential services during a crisis.
Those deployed come from units based in Scotland including 39 Engineer Regiment, 3 Scots and 45 Commando. Some of the marines from 45 Commando have recently returned from cold weather training.
The Ministry of Defence is also engaged with a number of local authorities in northern England who have been affected by Storm Arwen to identify where it would be appropriate to support.
Over the past five days, emergency teams have been working tirelessly to restore power in affected areas. Around 1 million people have been affected in total and power has now been restored to 98% of those affected.
Multi-agency response to Storm Arwen continues
The multi-agency response to return power to communities across the North East of Scotland is ongoing.
Anyone without power can refer to Scottish & Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) for updates on power cuts and the welfare support available.
The Aberdeenshire Council assistance centre remains open, between 8am and 8pm, to provide help to residents. They are contactable on 0808 1963 384 and information about rest and welfare centres is also available on their website.
Chief Superintendent George Macdonald said: “The damage caused by Storm Arwen has been unprecedented and has required significant repairs to be undertaken across the power, water and communications networks.
“The Strategic Local Resilience Partnership has met almost 20 times since last Friday, in preparation for and in response to the weather. The partnership involves local authorities, health and social care partnerships, emergency services, Maritime and Coastguard Agency, NHS, Scottish & Southern Electricity Networks, Scottish Water, SEPA, Forestry and Land Scotland, British Red Cross, and other local voluntary organisations. Together we are all committed to providing ongoing support to those affected by the power outage.
“Rest centres, which have been in place since the weekend, remain in place in a number of locations where SSEN advise full power has yet to return. There has been a significant humanitarian effort in response to the storm, with volunteers from across the partnership carrying out welfare checks on those without power, including more than 1,800 people who were identified as potentially vulnerable.”
Chief Superintendent Macdonald continued: “We recognise that this has been a very challenging time for everyone who has been without power and water for a long time. Due to the ongoing challenges and uncertainty around when supplies will be fully restored, which has added to the complexity of the response, the partnership has deemed it proportionate and necessary to seek additional humanitarian support from the military and we are grateful for their assistance.
“The scale of damage and difficult weather conditions have added to the challenges of restoring power, however there is an absolute commitment from all agencies to do this as quickly as possible and to continue providing support as we work towards a return to normality.”
Chief Superintendent Macdonald has also praised the community support and effort that has been seen since the storm hit the North East. He said: “The sense of community spirit has been fantastic to see and there has been numerous examples of kindness and selflessness in the face of real difficulties.
“Members of the public, businesses and volunteers have come together in true North East style, including helping my officers during the storm by providing additional torches, cut back or move fallen trees and branches and other examples of basic support, kindness and practical assistance which I know has been really appreciated and made officers jobs so much easier. Thank you.”
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