Millport rallies round as Storm Gerrit caused 'unprecedented' flooding

Heavy surface water and flooding hit businesses and homes on the seafront in what was described by firefighters as "unprecedented scenes".

An urgent plea for sandbags went out to the community - and in true Millport fashion, a group of community diggers rolled their sleeves up and went down the beach to assist.

Volunteers help provide sandbags to assist flood-hit properties (Image: Cumbrae Community Council)

The  Ritz Cafe was one of the properties affected and has given a heartfelt thank you to the community for lending its support.

A spokesperson for the cafe said: "We would like say a big thank you to our local fire brigade for their help this morning when the cafe got floodedm and also a big thank you to everyone who phoned and messaged to us offer their help to us."

Lesley Fraser of The Newton Bar was pictured serving rolls to community volunteers.

A spokesperson for Cumbrae Community Council said: "Thanks Cumbrae Community Resilience Team and emergency services for such a quick response, and thanks to the many sand diggers!"

A spokesperson for Cumbrae Coastguard said: "We supported Scottish Fire and Rescue Service units from Cumbrae and Largs.

Properties in Millport seafront were flooded (Image: Cumbrae Community Council)

Some more footage from the Cumbrae coast road today as #StormGerrit coincided with high tide causing overtopping and leaving storm debris behind. Check the forecast and take extra care when driving @fire_scot @largs_sfrs @PoliceScotland @CurrieAusten @thebigbadshow @KA28support pic.twitter.com/0G90BBWkZA

— Cumbrae Coastguard Rescue Team (@CumbraeCRT) December 27, 2023

"The torrential rain and high winds coincided with a high tide which led to a number of low-lying roads on Cumbrae becoming impassable and strewn with storm debris.

"A number of coastal properties suffered flooding, so we did what we could, hauling sandbags and helping to create temporary barriers to divert the water before fire crews continued pumping out what was left.

"It was a fantastic effort from so many people, showing community resilience in action."

A spokesperson for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said: “We were alerted at 9.49am to reports of flooding on Stuart Street, Millport.

“Operations control mobilised three appliances where crews assisted with diverting flood water away from shopfronts and properties using sandbags."

Areas of Largs, Fairlie and Skelmorlie also experienced flooding, while heavy surface water affected Brisbane Glen Road, Glen Avenue, and Raillies Avenue, as well as the entrance gateway to Kelburn and Fairlie Petrol Station on the A78.

Largs Golf Club, Douglas Park, and the Bowen Craig football pitches were all flooded as water cascaded towards the shore.

Well the #LargsColts2016 pitches are now more suited for water polo than football ⚽️ thanks to #StormGerrit's flooding🌧️🌊

Our coaches are getting creative & will be adding breaststroke to our training drills 🏊 pic.twitter.com/ghAIZHbkFE

— Largs Colts 2016s (@Largs_Colts2016) December 27, 2023

Properties in Marine Court and Keppenburn Avenue in Fairlie experienced flooding, while The Village Inn had to close early after its gents' toilets were flooded - though the business was able to reopen on Thursday.

North Coast independent councillor Ian Murdoch said: "I was inundated with calls, with the Noddleburn causing problems, and there was a culvert issue at Eglinton Terrance at Skelmorlie, while I provided help regarding Railies Avenue and Brisbane Glen, which was really bad with a burn overflowing.

"It was exceptional rainfall, and the snow overnight didn't help either, with various issues on the Haylie Brae."

Football pitch under water at Bowen Craig (Image: Caroline Le Good Morgan)

(Photos: Cumbrae Community Council, Cumbrae Coastguard, and Caroline Le Good Morgan)