Saturday, January 9, 2016

A Nightmare 24 hours...

Hi folks...I wasn't intending posting today but after lots of e-mails and PM's on Facebook...I just wanted to let you all know that Aberdeenshire in general and this creaky old crafter in particular have survived the worst 24 hour storm in living memory and come out the other side...albeit a bit battered and brushed. Torrential rain followed by heavy snow wreaked havoc across the region on Thursday...
Many communities have been devastated and hundreds if not thousands of residents evacuated to safety but us Scots are nothing if not resilient in the face of such adversity and the good news is the rain and snow has stopped. Radio and TV channels were very slow to react...in fact the unfolding disaster didn't even get a mention on the evening STV news but the wonderful guys at Fubar News rose to the challenge and posted up to the minute weather and road condition updates non-stop on Facebook...1908 updates in the space of 24 hours...allowing motorists to avoid danger areas and make it home safe and the situation would have been catastrophic without the emergency services who worked tirelessly in atrocious conditions to make sure everyone was safe but sadly there were far too many incidents like this one...using up time and valuable resources to rescue the "I am invincible" brigade...obviously not everyone has been blessed with common sense...
I take my hat off to the Police...Fire Service...Local Authority Personnel...Power Companies and all the folks who rallied round to help people in a time of great need including local hotels offering free accommodation and hot food to stranded motorists.  We're not out of the woods...many roads are still impassable and communities under water but what a difference a day makes...a "not seen for some time" bright yellow object has appeared in the sky...
it will take some time but hopefully the water levels will recede...the big mop up Aberdeenshire operation can begin and the lives of those affected get back to normal.
Stay safe if you're out and about and enjoy your weekend.
Hugs Kath xxx