A FLOOD alert was issued for Courier Country on Sunday as the area counted the cost of a weekend of carnage.
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency warned residents in Tayside and Fife to be prepared for further misery as the north-east continues to be battered by heavy rain and high tides.
Families were forced from their homes as sea water breached the east coast, with the Scottish Government convening an emergency task force.
Environment Minister Paul Wheelhouse chaired a Holyrood Resilience Room meeting to discuss the weather, describing the conditions as a “perfect storm”.
He said: “Already communities are coming together with volunteers, helping in the debris clean-up operation, in partnership with local authorities.
“I thank people for their efforts and this community spirit will be important as the worst affected areas return to normality.”
On Friday one crew member aboard a North Sea standby vessel, the Vos Sailor, died after the vessel suffered serious storm damage out at sea.
In Stonehaven, 25 people were evacuated from their homes, many of whom were elderly residents at two sheltered housing units which flooded in the early hours of Saturday morning.
Communities in the Mearns and Aberdeenshire were some of the worst affected areas, with a further 30 people ordered to leave their homes in Peterhead due to flooding.
Power supplies were cut in some towns and there was substantial damage to a range of properties.
A 15m section of harbour wall collapsed in Lossiemouth, Moray, and huge waves caused up to £500,000 of damage to North Berwick harbour in East Lothian as the sea defences were destroyed.
The high tide reached Angus and the Mearns at around 2.30pm yesterday and people evacuated from affected properties earlier in the day remained out of their homes last night.
Police warned motorists to drive with caution as the wet conditions mixed with freezing temperatures on the roads.
Severe weather warnings were also put in place for the Highlands, Grampian and Central Scotland.
* For more on the flooding, including more dramatic photos from Stonehaven, see Monday’s Courier