North Ayrshire was battered by heavy rain last week with flooding destroying homes and killing a woman’s beloved dog.
The River Garnock in North Ayrshire surged with floodwater on Tuesday, and Main Street in Glengarnock was left under three feet of water.
Incessant rain from Monday evening into Tuesday caused the river to swell.
As well as homes, the village hair salon, cafe and pub were all flooded.
A small dog so traumatised by the water’s ingress into her owner’s home died of shock.
Margaret Jamieson lost her precious pet Lassie of six years as she tried to carry her to safety.
Margaret’s daughter June told the Herald: “All I know is water came so fast she tried to get her wee dog out as she was too heavy for my mum to carry out back door.
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“By the time mum got to the grass the wee thing had died.
“She was scared of water, must have been the water that caused her death.”
Margaret’s ground floor flat was engulfed in the torrent, destroying everything she owned, and now she cannot bear the thought of returning to the place that was once her home.
June said: “She doesn’t want to return cause of what happened to Lassie. She blames herself for it.”
READ MORE: Homes and cars ruined after drains fail to carry floodwater
Councillor Donald L Reid said: “The two foot bridges in Glengarnock had water forcefully cascading over them, large logs hurtling along carried by the current and banging loudly against all in their path. Simply put the power of the Garnock was a scary sight to behold.”
Work had just begun on the Garnock Flood Plan, which is expected to take just under two years to complete.
Eglinton Park was devastated as floodwater swept across paths, almost submerging bridges.
Trees were felled with logs smashing into everything in their path as they were carried by the current.
Railways lines were also affected with Network Rail having to close the Ardrossan Harbour branch due to the height of the floodwater.
READ MORE: Stormy weather wreaks havoc in Ardrossan, Saltcoats and Stevenston
A spokesperson for Network Rail said: “We’re monitoring water levels closely on this bridge on the Ardrossan Harbour branch. It’s above the red marker which means the line has been closed until it can be inspected safely.”
A spokesperson for North Ayrshire Council said: “Earlier last week, we responded to a number of localised flooding incidents across North Ayrshire following a period of prolonged extreme rainfall.
“In order to assist, we provided sandbags to a number of residential streets, two drain clearing vehicles were deployed to alleviate the pressure on the drainage network and our teams were on standby into the evening and through the night to monitor conditions and provide further support as required.
“In the most significantly affected areas, we also undertook clean-up operations and mechanical and manual sweeping to remove accumulations of silt and debris. We also cleared accumulations of debris which had been washed downstream in and around our watercourse structures in the days following the flooding to ensure any blockages from the flooding were quickly addressed.”
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