Body of woman found after being swept into river amid Storm Babet red weather warning
19 October 2023, 20:27 | Updated: 19 October 2023, 21:35
The body of a woman has been found after she was swept into a river in north-eastern Scotland, as Storm Babet hit on Thursday.
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The woman, 57, fell into the river in the area of Angus on Thursday afternoon.
Police were called to the Water of Lee at Glen Esk at about 13:45 and the body was found at 16:00.
"There are no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death and a report will be submitted to the procurator fiscal."
Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf said the woman's death was "such sad news."
"My thoughts are with the family, friends and loved ones of the woman who has sadly lost her life," he added.
The town of Brechin in Angus was being evacuated on Thursday, with 360 families told to leave their homes.
It comes after the Met Office issued a red ‘danger to life’ warning from 6pm today through to midday on Friday with 70mph gale force winds predicted.
The red warning was later expanded to cover Angus, South Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross and Dundee.
A month’s worth of rain is expected to fall by Friday and the worst affected areas. People in Scotland have been sharing pictures and video of the ‘unprecedented’ weather.
Police Scotland Assistant Chief Constable Stuart Houston said: "Our advice is to avoid any form of travel in areas covered by the red weather warning.
"Driving conditions will be extremely dangerous with disruption expected.
"It's important that everyone considers the amber warnings that still remain in place for rain and wind. This will present a particular challenge to high-sided vehicles - so please consider whether these journeys are essential."
Stein Connelly of Transport Scotland - who described the storm as a "rapidly moving situation" - said: "The advice from Police Scotland is that people should avoid travel in the red areas.
"Stay home if you can. If you need to make essential trips in the amber areas - expect a high level of disruption to the transport network.
"Resilience partners, road-operating companies and transport operators are working hard to keep the network open - and the public can help us by planning ahead and by following the latest advice."
