Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Nearly 60 Brechin homes devastated by Storm Babet will never be fit to live in again, warns ex-builder

Gavin Nicol, now an Angus councillor, signalled the alarm bell as the local authority admits it is considering "all options".

A boat rescue in action in Brechin during Storm Babet.
Dozens of council houses in Brechin are still unoccupied after Storm Babet. Image: Andrew Milligan/PA Wire

An ex-builder claims 58 Brechin homes devastated by flooding during Storm Babet last October will not be “fit for human occupation” again.

Gavin Nicol, now a Conservative councillor in Angus, fears properties next to the River South Esk will flood again if families move back in.

He says it would be better to demolish the 58 homes which remain empty, nearly a full year on from the horrendous storm.

The local authority says “all options” are on the table.

Brechin councillor Gavin Nicol
Gavin Nicol warned 58 homes in Brechin will need to be demolished. Image: Angus Council.

Mr Nicol, who covers the Brechin and Edzell Ward, ran his own building firm for more than 20 years and says the situation is dire.

He told The Courier: “We’re in a bad way. These properties could be structurally damaged.

“We cannot repair these houses, and then rescue the tenants at the next flood with only the clothes on their back.

“These properties would never get insurance again. It’s dire.”

His company constructed housing, police stations, fire stations, and agricultural buildings across Tayside, Fife, and Aberdeenshire

Floodwater outside Laura's home in Brechin.
Brechin was devastated by the storm last October. Image: Andrew Milligan/PA

Councillor Nicol fears flooding next to the River South Esk will only get worse.

“If we were to demolish homes due to being on a flood plain, it would be far more than 58 properties demolished,” he told us.

Angus Council received £6.9 million in April from a national scheme designed to help local authorities in the aftermath of emergencies.

Brechin residents pulled to safety
Hundreds of homes in Brechin were evacuated. Image: Paul Reid.

Families affected by the storm were able to apply for £1,500 in lifeline funding from the Scottish Government, while businesses could ask for up to £3,000.

But Mr Nicol warns the emergency cash was not enough for some households.

“We’re speaking about a national disaster,” he told us.

“People lost everything.”

Brechin residents received lifeline funding after the storm. Image: Paul Reid.

The Scottish Government said: “Given the exceptional nature of Storm Babet, we provided additional support including more than £700,000 to households and businesses in the Angus Council area.”

A council spokesperson told us ground floor properties damaged by the storm had been “fully stripped and dried out”.

They said: “Any decision to complete further works remain on hold until the review of supporting technical studies commissioned by the council.

“The consultants will prepare their final report and a consultative draft will be provided to officers for consideration.

“All options are being reviewed.”

Conversation