Farms and crofts across Scotland have been battered by 70mph winds, heavy rain and major flooding. Arable farmer Amy Geddes, of Wester Braikie Farms, near Arbroath, Angus, said the reports on NFU Scotland’s eastern Scotland WhatsApp group were ‘awful’ and ‘heartbreaking’: “Farmers knew Storm Babet was coming. Unfortunately, we are talking about 5m of water after the River Esk burst its banks in Brechin; the flood walls are only about 3.8m high. There are potato stores along the river area. They will be severely flooded by now, which is not good. We have seen some terrible reports from farmers across Angus and into Perthshire.”
“Farms have lost entire crops. The Southesk Estate in Angus will be absolutely devastated. Most of the estate down there will be completely inundated. People have described the flooding as unprecedented.”
Before Storm Babet, rural areas across parts of Scotland saw significant damage following extensive flooding earlier this month. Martin Malone, NFU Mutual manager for Scotland, warned that farms and rural dwellings were more at risk from extreme weather.
Source: fwi.co.uk