Tag: weather warning

New Scottish Flood Forecast informs public of flooding three days in advance

Communities across Scotland will be able to prepare and take action sooner to protect themselves from flooding as a new three-day Scottish Flood Forecast launches.

Developed by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and the Met Office, the Scottish Flood Forecast provides the earliest indication possible of when and where flooding is expected over the next three days, and whether the source is from rivers, surface water or the sea.

In addition, the colour coded map on SEPA’s website describes the potential impacts on communities and links to advice and information on what protective action people can take if required. It also offers reassurance when significant flooding is not expected.

The Scottish Flood Forecast was developed following extensive research involving the public, community flood groups, emergency responders, partner organisations and both SEPA and Met Office employees. Feedback from more than 200 users was also gathered during a trial phase from May last year.

Gail Walker is from the Tillicoultry, Devonside and Coalsnaughton Flood Group (Tideco): “The Scottish Flood Forecast is an important information source for Tideco. Advance warning of flooding supports us to work out how we can best respond to weather events with the resources we have.

“Tillicoultry has a number of flooding issues and is a known flooding ‘hot spot’. This can include surface water and sewage flooding within residential streets, as well as flooding from the Tillicoultry Burn and the River Devon, which both have a history of having flooded out homes in the past. Whilst we have some flood defence measures in place, we still have areas that are vulnerable.

“The Scottish Flood Forecast is a useful trigger for the group to plan, prepare and to make sure volunteers are in areas where we know there is the potential for flooding. The key role of Tideco is to warn, inform and offer support to those at risk of flooding or who may have been impacted.”

The forecast is produced every morning, 365 days a year, and published on SEPA’s website. It is an additional tool for the public to use alongside the current Floodline service, which issues shorter notice Regional Flood Alerts and Local Flood Warnings to those signed up, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Environment Minister Mairi McAllan said: “Flooding can cause utter devastation to people and communities, as we saw again in several parts of the country in November and December last year.

“The impact of the climate emergency, across the world and here in Scotland, means that flooding will be more frequent. That is why it’s so important that we increase community resilience and take action to manage flood risk.

“The Scottish Flood Forecast will give people a three day look ahead to help make plans for travel and ensure safety and is a product of the excellent partnership working between SEPA and the Met Office.

“This new three-day forecast is a helpful addition to the other important services, such as Floodline, that the Scottish Flood Forecasting Service provides.”

Nicole Paterson, SEPA Chief Executive, added: “The Scottish Flood Forecast has been the biggest change to SEPA’s flood warning service in the last decade and is a major step forward in helping communities become more resilient to flooding.

“This winter we were reminded why that is so important, as parts of Scotland experienced damaging impacts from flooding – notably Aberdeenshire and Angus in November and Dumfries and Galloway in December.

“While the Scottish Flood Forecast currently displays information at a national level, work will continue on the forecast to gradually introduce localised information.”

Ian Cameron, Met Office Markets Director, said: “Every day the Met Office and SEPA teams work in close partnership to publish the Scottish Flood Forecast, providing guidance to the flood forecasting team at the Scottish Flood Forecasting Service (SFFS) with the latest weather information. 

“Working together in the SFFS Partnership enables the Met Office and SEPA to achieve more together and create a more resilient environment.”

The Scottish Flood Forecast can be viewed at www.sepa.org.uk/scottishfloodforecast.

SEPA issues first water scarcity alert of 2022

  • The Firth of Tay area, covering north Fife and Dundee, has seen the risk of water scarcity increase to alert from early warning stage.  
  • Businesses abstracting water in affected areas urged to be more water efficient to protect environment and business operations.
  • SEPA’s latest water situation report shows dry conditions impacting river flows and soil moisture. 
  • Most of the south and east of Scotland remains at early warning.  

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) has published its first water scarcity alert of the year with business operators and farmers in the Firth of Tay area urged to efficiently manage their water use. 

The risk of water scarcity in north Fife and Dundee has increased to alert from early warning and SEPA is monitoring the area closely, coordinating steps to manage water resources in line with Scotland’s National Water Scarcity Plan. Businesses which abstract water in affected areas are being urged to consider how they can be more efficient to protect both the environment and their own operations. 

SEPA is responsible for the forecasting, monitoring, and reporting of the situation facing Scotland’s water resources and will produce weekly water scarcity reports from May to September. 

Head of Water and Planning at SEPA, Nathan Critchlow-Watton, said:  “It is vital that water abstractors in north Fife and Dundee, who are licensed by SEPA, have a plan to deal with water scarcity. We would encourage businesses to abstract at different times, reduce the volume/rate where possible and consider alternative sources of water. 
 
“Climate change is already having an impact with a decrease in rainfall expected over the summer, and we have to be ready for more pressure on Scotland’s water resources, perhaps in places that have not had to deal with water scarcity before.  
 
“SEPA aims to work with businesses to do the right thing and protect Scotland’s water environment. We can provide advice and guidance on ways to reduce pressure on rivers at risk of drought. Taking action now will reduce the likelihood of SEPA resorting to regulatory action.” 

Businesses can find more information about water scarcity and ways to prepare on SEPA’s website.

Although Scotland is generally considered a wet country, we are continuing to see the effects of long periods of dry weather. The Scottish Government has this week highlighted the need to be prepared for the continued effects of climate change in Scotland, highlighting SEPA’s water scarcity reports. 

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Amber weather warning: Storm Malik

An AMBER warning for high wind has been issued for eastern Scotland.

The warning is in place from 7am to 3pm today (Saturday January 28, 2022).

If you are driving a vehicle which may be vulnerable to being blown over in such conditions along exposed routes including bridges, please exercise additional caution and plan your route to avoid exposed areas or consider cancelling your journey until conditions improve.

For further information about how the weather is expected to affect your area and for advice on how to stay safe, please visit the Met Office website:

https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/…/warnings…/uk-warnings…

Snow and ice warning issued

An Amber warning for snow has been issued for parts of Scotland and north east England.

There is also a yellow national severe weather warning in place for snow and ice across large parts of England and Scotland.

The Amber snow warning is valid until 10am this morning (Thursday).

https://twitter.com/i/status/1349308040097492994

Rain will turn to snow, initially on high ground this afternoon, but increasingly to lower levels.  The risk of snow will extend southwards into northern parts of England this evening. 10 to 20 cm of snow could accumulate above 200 metres within the warning area and some places at lower levels could see 5 to 10 cm of snow by Thursday morning. Snow is likely to slowly die out through tomorrow afternoon.

Met Office Chief Meteorologist, Paul Gundersen, said; “There is cold air from the north pushing down the east side of the UK and warm air moving in from the west. Where these two air masses meet a weather front is bringing some heavy rain which is turning to snow in places.”

The current, more widespread, yellow warning for snow and ice is valid until 9pm tonight.   It covers the risk of snow and sleet this afternoon across large parts of northern England and Scotland, as well as the risk of ice with rain falling on frozen surfaces overnight tonight and tomorrow morning.

There is a continued risk of  wintry, unsettled weather into next week as warm and cold air continue to battle it out above the UK and weather fronts try to make headway across the country. 

A yellow snow and ice warning has already be issued for Saturday covering large parts of Scotland and northern and central England.

Keep up to date with the latest weather warnings and the forecast for your area using the warning and forecast pages on the Met Office website.

You can also follow the Met Office on Twitter and Facebook, as well as using the  mobile app which is available for iPhone from the App store and for Android from the Google Play store. 

Weather warning: snow and ice

Police Scotland is advising drivers that the Met Office has issued a Yellow Weather Warning for snow and ice covering a number of areas across Scotland today (Thursday, 31 December).

The local authority areas affected will be Highland, Na h-Eileanan Siar, Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Moray, Angus, Clackmannanshire, Dundee, Falkirk, Fife, Perth and Kinross, Stirling, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Edinburgh, Midlothian Council, Scottish Borders, West Lothian, Argyll and Bute, East Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Glasgow, North Lanarkshire, Renfrewshire, South Ayrshire, South Lanarkshire, West Dunbartonshire.

The Met Office warning lasts until 2pm on Thursday, 31 December. Conditions for travel may be hazardous and extra caution should be exercised.

What to expect:

Snow and ice may bring some disruption late in to Thursday morning or early afternoon.

Northerly winds will bring showers of rain, sleet and snow across the north of Northern Ireland as well as northern, western and south of Scotland.

Snow accumulations will mostly be confined to ground above 100m away from coasts, but some temporary slushy deposits are possible to low levels at times. 1-3cm is likely to accumulate above 100m, and as much as 5-10cm above 250m, this mostly across high ground of Scotland. Some accumulations of 1-3 cm are likely, again mainly over higher ground, but 5 cm or more is possible over parts of southern Scotland.

What to do:

If you are travelling you should ensure that you and your vehicle are adequately prepared for the conditions, making sure you have sufficient fuel and supplies, such as warm clothing, food & water in the event of being delayed for several hours.

Make sure that there is sufficient tread on the tyres fitted to your vehicle, ensure tyres are correctly inflated and that the screen wash is filled.

Charge your mobile phone and have the ability to charge it further if necessary.

Plan your route as well as alternatives to your planned route.

Drive to the conditions, leaving sufficient distance between you and the vehicle in front to allow you to use smooth braking, steering and acceleration to minimise skid risk.

Listen to media broadcasts especially local radio and Traffic Scotland Radio or visit www.trafficscotland.org.

For public transport information visit www.travelinescotland.

Follow @policescotland and @trafficscotland on Twitter for regular and up to date travel information.

12 Regional Flood Alerts and 16 Local Flood Warning issued

Mark Franklin, Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s (SEPA’s) Flood Duty Manager, said: “Heavy rain and strong winds are expected across much of Scotland on Saturday and Sunday.

“Flooding impacts from rivers and surface water are possible across much of the south west and west of Scotland, including Argyll, much of central Scotland and extending across Tayside into Angus and Aberdeenshire.

“Impacts may include flooding of land and roads, disruption to travel and difficult driving conditions.

“There may also be disruption from spray and waves overtopping today along the Solway coast, west coast, the Caithness, Sutherland and Moray coastlines and around the Orkney and Shetland Islands.

“Flood alerts have been issued and people living, working and travelling in affected areas are advised to take extra care and ensure they have signed up to Floodline. You can also stay up to date with flood alerts and warnings at floodlinescotland.org.uk/.

 “The Met Office has issued a yellow rain warning for much of the  south and west of the country for Saturday.

“SEPA is working 24/7 to monitor rainfall and river levels, and is in close contact with the Met Office and other partners to review the forecasts, which are combined with local expertise from all regions of Scotland to understand and present the flooding risk. The most up-to-date information is always available on our website.”

Staying informed

  • All SEPA’s Alerts and Warnings are available on our website at floodline.sepa.org.uk/floodupdates/
  • Floodline is always the most up-to-date information – with any new flood updates available as soon as they are issued.
  • You can also sign up to receive these messages to your phone, for free. You can register online at floodline.sepa.org.uk/floodingsignup/
  • Advice on what you can do to prepare for flooding can be found at org.uk/

Be prepared and stay safe

  • Check Floodline – visit sepa.org.uk/floodupdates
  • 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.
  • On the road or on public transport we can expect difficult conditions.
  • Drive with care, and do not travel through deep fast flowing water. It only takes 30sm of fast flowing water to move an average family sized car.
  • If you are walking beside rivers be extra careful of wet footpaths and possibly small watercourses in spate.

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.

Motorists urged to drive with care after Met Office warning

Police Scotland is advising drivers to TRAVEL WITH CAUTION overnight tonight (Friday, February 1, 2019) and tomorrow morning, following a Met. Office Yellow Weather Warning for snow and ice covering the South East (East Lothian, Scottish Borders), Aberdeenshire, Highlands, Western Isles, Orkney and Shetland. Continue reading Motorists urged to drive with care after Met Office warning

Police issue travel warning

Drivers across Scotland are reminded to travel with caution during this evening and tomorrow morning’s rush hour.

A Met Office yellow warning for ice and snow is currently in place across almost every area of Scotland. You can check if these warnings apply to where you live and work here. Police Scotland advice remains to travel with extra caution, and to keep informed in case of any changes in weather or traffic disruption.  Continue reading Police issue travel warning