Aberdeenshire experienced widespread flooding and significant road damage, following a period of intense downpours and thunderstorms across the region. The adverse weather, which saw communities such as Banchory and Laurencekirk heavily impacted, led to business disruptions, most notably at Union Square shopping centre in Aberdeen.
Residents in Banchory described the conditions on social media as “torrential showers of a like they’d rarely seen,” underscoring the severity of the rainfall. Across Aberdeenshire, local roads sustained damage due to the persistent heavy rain.
In Aberdeen’s city centre, Union Square faced closures as shops were affected by the inundation. The bakery chain Greggs, for instance, was forced to cease trading due to internal flooding. Staff within the affected units were reportedly working to manage the water ingress, with one worker telling The P&J that efforts to reopen were hampered because “the lights keep tripping when switched on.” Visual evidence from the scene showed “blue rolls placed along shop windows to help prevent water from flooding inside,” alongside “wet floor signs and buckets” in attempts to mitigate the impact.
The heavy rainfall arrived after the Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for thunderstorms, which was active from 3 pm until 10 pm on June 2. The warning encompassed various parts of Scotland, including Aberdeenshire, Moray, and the Highlands. Forecasters had cautioned that “probably some damage to a few buildings and structures” was to be expected due to lightning strikes. The Met Office further advised individuals outdoors during a thunderstorm to seek “safe, enclosed shelter,” such as a car.
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) responded by issuing three amber flood alerts for areas including Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire, Dundee and Angus, and Tayside, highlighting the elevated risk to properties and infrastructure. Some areas within the warning zone were anticipated to receive between 15-25 mm of rain in an hour, with accumulations potentially reaching up to 50 mm over several hours.
