Elected Member Briefing Notes 2022, Issues 31, 32 and 33
About this briefing note
A series of briefing notes were issued throughout 8 September 2022 to update elected members on the impact of localised flooding following heavy rain. For ease of reference all three briefing notes are included on this page.
Report by: Lisa Potter, Communications & Performance Manager
Date: 8 September 2022
Subject: Localised flooding
Responsible Officer: Barbara Renton, Executive Director Communities
Publication
This Briefing Note has been published on the Council's website following circulation to Councillors. Its contents may be disclosed or shared outwith the Council.
Details
Purpose
To update elected members on the impact of heavy rainfall leading to localised flooding in Perth and some surrounding areas.
Update 1 - 11am
Flood gates were closed yesterday in in advance of the yellow rain warning coming into effect.
Heavy rainfall has led to localised flooding in Glenturret Terrace, Needless Road, South Inch Terrace, Murray Crescent, Queen's Street and Feus Road.
Glenearn Community Campus, Perth Academy and Abernethy Primary School are also reporting issues with localised flooding and any updates on impact this has on the operation of schools will be provided through the usual channels as soon as possible.
The A85 between Methven and Crieff is closed to all vehicles. Broxden Roundabout on the trunk road network is also badly affected with carriageways restricted due to flood water.
The areas of flooding are a result of the volume of rainfall which means the network of drains and the Craigie Burn have reached capacity to quickly drain away surface water leading to localised flooding. Surface water on the first part of the South Inch is also overflowing on to the second part of the Inch.
The ponds on Glasgow Road are also topping over onto the road and further checks are being carried out there to see if any other measures can reduce this.
Roads and flooding teams are out in working in these areas and Tayside Contracts are issuing sandbags. Scottish Fire and Rescue Service have also been deployed to support.
Advice for residents
Due to the volume and spread of rainfall there is not capacity to put up road closed signs on all roads affected, so road users should drive with caution and not attempt to cross sections of road which look flooded.
Protecting properties from flooding is the responsibility of individual householders, however, where residents require additional assistance due to flooding they should call 01738 476476. The Customer Service Centre will answer these calls and co-ordinate information to the roads teams.
Further advice on flooding is available on our website at: https://www.pkc.gov.uk/flooding
Weather forecast
Update from Met Office via civil contingency channels:
The rain currently over Perthshire will weaken and move westwards through the rest of this morning. The Met Office has issued a medium likelihood of low impact rainfall warning for Fife, parts of Perth & Kinross, Clacks, Falkirk, Lothians, Borders, Lanarkshires, D&G and parts of Ayrshire. The warning mentions widespread totals of 20-30mm in 3-6hours, with the potential of seeing 50mm falling during this time, most likely over eastern hills. This could cause some flooding issues on transport networks as well as flooding of a few homes and businesses. The warning is valid from 1500-2345 today.
Other transport
Scotrail have closed all lines between Perth and Gleneagles and Perth and Ladybank.
Next update
Incident Management Team meeting at 1pm, further updates will be provided as information is received.
Update 2 - 1.30pm
Heavy rainfall has led to localised flooding across Perth and Kinross. Flood gates on the South Inch, Perth were closed yesterday ahead of the yellow warning of rain coming into place.
The volume of rainfall in the early hours of this morning and during the day has been comparable to that experienced in 2020.
Updates are being published on the Council's Facebook channel and on the service disruptions page of our website, with a pinned link to that page on our Twitter channel.
Update from Incident Management Team meeting:
Road closures
- Murray Crescent, Perth
- Hospital Street, Perth
- Glenearn Road, Perth
- Glasgow Road, Perth (at roundabout to park and ride)
- Lamberkine Drive, Perth
- Gray Street, Perth
- Barossa Street, Perth
- New Row, Perth
- Queen Street, Perth
- Feus Road, Perth
- A913 Main Street, Abernethy is open but police are in attendance to guide cars through the water
- B935 Forgandenny flooded, but open and passable with care
Broxden roundabout is also heavily flooded with lanes restricted as a result.
There is flooding in Bridge of Earn at Old Edinburgh Road, Clayton Road and Back Street. Scottish Water are in attendance and are checking that the pumps are working.
Schools
Inch View Primary School, Glenearn Road, Perth will be closed on a class by class basis throughout this afternoon to manage pick-ups due to the flooding on Glenearn Road and water encroaching on the school and grounds. This is being managed through direct communication with parents to avoid having too many people trying to access the school area at the same time. It is possible that the school will also have to be closed tomorrow for assessment of the areas where water has entered the building, but this has not yet been confirmed. Parents will be kept informed.
Forgandenny Primary School remains open, but due to flooding on the nearby road the headteacher is inviting parents to pick up pupils early this afternoon.
Perth Academy and Abernethy Primary School have reported some issues because of the rain, but both remain open.
Housing
Some households in Queen Street have made alternative arrangements due to flooding, but there have been no requests received for emergency accommodation. Hotels have however been secured overnight in case this is required.
The Housing Repairs Service have received 150 calls this morning from tenants reporting issues with leaks or other water related matters. For comparison yesterday the service received 20 calls. Extra trades staff have been secured for overnight if required.
While Feus Road in Perth is flooded there are no reports of internal living areas of properties having been affected.
More sandbags have been transported to Perth to bolster supplies in case they are required, however the team are being careful about where these are allocated, as if the flood waters are already high sandbags will not have an impact.
Future activity
The Met Office have advised that we should expect more bands of rain late afternoon into evening, but this will not be of the same volume or intensity as experienced this morning.
Once waters have receded to a level where they can be used, additional machinery to clear the gullies of silt/debris washed in by the floodwater will be brought in where appropriate.
Next update
Incident Management Team meeting at 4pm, further updates will be provided as information is received.
Update 3 - 4.30pm
Heavy rainfall has led to localised flooding across Perth and Kinross. Flood gates on the South Inch, Perth were closed yesterday ahead of the yellow warning of rain coming into place.
The volume of rainfall in the early hours of this morning and during the day has been comparable to that experienced in 2020, with SEPA monitoring suggesting that over five hours the equivalent of a month's worth of season rain fell.
Updates are being published on the Council's Facebook channel and on the service disruptions page of our website, with a pinned link to that page on our Twitter channel.
Update from Incident Management Team meeting:
Road closures
- Murray Crescent, Perth
- Hospital Street, Perth
- Gray Street, Perth
- Barossa Street, Perth
- New Row, Perth
- Feus Road, Perth
Open and passable with care
- A913 Main Street, Abernethy
- B935 Forgandenny
- Glenearn Road, Perth
- Queen Street, Perth
- Glasgow Road, Perth
Broxden roundabout is also heavily flooded with lanes restricted as a result. Trunk road maintenance firm Amey is working in the area.
Glasgow Road near the roundabout leading to the park and ride and Lamberkine Drive has re-opened, but as you can see from the photo below the flood water has washed gravel on to the road. We're asking drivers to be careful on the road until we can get a mechanical brush to the site, but as this is in demand across the area that may not be until tomorrow morning.
Schools
Inch View Primary School and Forgandenny Primary School pick ups went well. Thanks to Mitie staff and Council staff on site at Inch View to carry out a clean up and assessment we expect the Inch View Primary to open as usual tomorrow. Parents will be kept informed.
There are no other outstanding issues at schools.
Road gullies
Flood water has washed silt and debris into road gullies and on to roads, with an estimated 120 tonnes of material flowing off Buckie Braes and Craigie Burn overflow. This is resulting in photos on social media suggesting that blocked road gullies are to blame for flooding, as per previous updates the reason for localised flooding is the sheer volume of rainfall this morning.
Cherrybank
We are aware of concerns at Cherrybank after the earlier rainfall and crews on tonight will monitor this tonight in case the situation worsens.
Overnight
The Met Office have advised that we should expect more bands of rain between 7pm and 9pm and between 2am and 3am, but this will not be of the same volume or intensity as experienced this morning. SEPA have confirmed similar through their monitoring systems.
Our Customer Service Centre will remain open until 7pm tonight and will then switch over the out of hours service provided through the Aberdeen call centre. Aberdeen have confirmed our request for additional staff to support any calls received later this evening and will bring in the overnight shift early to deal with any increased demand.
Additional Tayside Contracts staff will also be in place overnight to support the Roads Maintenance Partnership, and parking attendants will be available during tonight's expected period of rainfall to support as required.
There are no further Incident Management Team meetings scheduled, but this will be reconvened if necessary
Share this page
