Shetland has been hailed as a “resilient community” after heavy snow left thousands without power amid freezing temperatures.
Some 2,800 homes were left without power when snow and ice brought down electricity lines earlier this week, prompting the Scottish Government to declare a major incident.
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) is still working to reconnect power but warned that some may be in the dark until the end of the week.
Extra crews of engineers arrived by ferry on Shetland earlier on Wednesday to help, with 125 now working on the problem.
Scotland’s Justice Secretary Keith Brown – who is also the minister in the Scottish Government who leads on resilience – told BBC Radio Scotland’s Drivetime: “We’ve seen a extraordinary response from people within Shetland as well.
“It is a very resilient community as we’ve seen recently in relation to the cable problems which were there before, but we understand of course that this is quite exceptional, and we’ll be providing support through our partners.
“The local reliance partnership programme is working really well.
“The main concern is first of all people that rely on power for safety and medical supplies or equipment, then we have people that are generally considered to be vulnerable to these situations, and then the general population.
“But the real concern comes for somebody that we don’t know about that may be in trouble relating to this.
“There has been a huge amount of work done, but it’s really important for the rest of Scotland to know how resilient the people of Shetland are at looking after each other. We’re doing everything we can to make sure nobody is left out.”
More snow could hit the island over the next 24 hours, with a yellow weather warning still in force.
Police Scotland has also reported that roads in Shetland are still being impacted by the weather, with the majority of side roads remaining “impassable”.
All main two-lane roads are now passable with care but there are significant snowdrifts on the A971 Sandness and B9078 Eshaness.
Chief Inspector Stuart Clemenson said: “Local and national partners and members of the community are working round the clock to ensure vulnerable people have the support they need.
“Responders have been out on foot checking on sheltered accommodation residents and delivering medication, while there has been a phenomenal response from SSEN who have extra engineers coming over on flights and by ferry.
“While we wait for power to be restored to all homes, I continue to urge people to stay at home and find ways to stay warm. Link in with neighbours, friends and family to ensure they are safe and well and listen to the local radio or follow social media for updates.
“It’s really important that we all check in with vulnerable people when severe weather affects our communities, and that community spirit will be extremely important in Shetland at the moment.
“These conditions are extremely challenging to deal with and our officers are responding to incidents as quickly as possible. If you need police help, contact 101 or 999 in an emergency.”
