There are fears that people who had to flee their homes because of the “unprecedented” floods caused by Storm Babet may not be able to re-enter until after Christmas.
Rescue operations are underway in the Scottish town of Brechin, Angus, after flood defences were breached in the early hours of the morning, leading to hundreds of homes being surrounded by water.
The local council has appealed for donations of warm clothes after 40 people turned up to rest centres while “soaked”.
On Thursday afternoon, a woman died after being swept into a river in the county amid the evacuation of 400 homes in the region.
There is also an ongoing helicopter search in Aberdeenshire following a report of a man trapped in a vehicle in floodwater.
Parts of Brechin are now only accessible by boat and the area is said to be in a “serious emergency”.
Gavin Nicol said the town’s flood barriers are 3.8 metres high but the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) has warned the water could reach 5.0 metres.
He said: “With the amount of rain we’re getting it might even supersede that.
“It’s just a disaster. The water is not going down, it is still rising.”
Mr Nicol, Conservative representative for the Brechin and Edzell Ward on Angus Council, said high tide at about 5pm on Friday could pose a particular problem.
He said: “My thoughts go out to those affected. With this time of year, it’s coming up to Christmas, and some people might not even get back in their homes by then.”
Rescue teams, including the police, fire service and coastguard – have been trying to reach stranded top-floor residents by boat.
Mr Nicoll added: “There’s one or two cars floating about.
“These houses will not be habitable in the near future. It’s not just water – there’s sewage as well.”
Meanwhile, Brechin resident Tracy Taylor is at a rest centre after leaving her home when the River South Esk burst its banks.
She told the PA news agency: “It is bad down there. We’ve been here since seven o’clock.”
Ms Taylor said there were “a lot” of other people in the rest centre.
When asked if she and her family had decided to leave their home or if they were evacuated, Ms Taylor said “it was a bit of both”, adding they were worried about what will happen to their home.
Angus council said there have been more than 100 calls for help after an area covering hundreds of homes was advised on Thursday to evacuate, with conditions expected to deteriorate into the weekend.
An update from the council said: “Angus is in the middle of a very serious emergency following a very challenging night.
“Brechin defences were breached around 4am this morning.
“River levels are around 4.4 metres above normal levels and continuing to increase as Storm Babet persists.
“This is completely unprecedented and at these heights, gauges have become unreliable.”
Councillor and Brechin resident, Chris Beattie, said some people in the Angus town remain stranded because rescue crews cannot reach them due to the flooding.
He said: “The bottom of the town is under about five or six feet (two metres) of water.
“People are being rescued and taken to the Brechin rescue centre.
“Some people are stranded – they might have several feet of water to cross to get to the door and at the moment it is not safe to do that.”
Earlier, Police Scotland said the body of a 57-year-old woman was recovered from Water of Lee at Glen Esk, where a red weather alert is in place until noon on Friday.
The region was battered by heavy rain and 20,000 properties were hit by power cuts, although Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) said electricity had been restored to almost 18,500.
The Environment Agency said homes could be flooded in 45 areas of England and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency also warned there is a “danger to life” due to widespread flooding in five areas of Scotland, with flooding expected in a further 16 areas.
Gusts in excess of 60 mph are likely on Friday, with particularly poor conditions on immediate coastlines with large waves adding to the list of hazards.
The Met Office red weather warning began at 6pm on Thursday and has been expanded to include Dundee, Perth and Kinross, as well as Angus and Aberdeenshire, where 20ft waves were seen crashing in Stonehaven harbour.
Amber warnings for wind and rain have been issued for parts of northern England, the Midlands and northern Wales from noon on Friday to 6am on Saturday.
A yellow warning for Northern Ireland is also in place from 3am on Friday to 9am on Saturday.
