Coastal residents urged to remain vigilant as rain continues Residents of coastal areas have been urged to remain vigilant near the sea and waterways after nearly twice the monthly average rain fell over parts of Scotland. December rainfall in the west of Scotland was 90% higher than average, while overall Scottish rainfall was nearly two thirds above the long term average. Hundreds of properties have been affected by power cuts in the last two days, and around 2000 people have received flood alerts on the east and west coasts, according to Environment Minister Paul Wheelhouse. Mr Wheelhouse said prevention work had "helped to limit the impact of flooding in Scotland" over the last week, while the majority of properties affected by power cuts were reconnected within six hours. He said: "I would like to pay a particular tribute to all those in our agencies, emergency services, local authorities and the local responders who have helped to keep Scotland safe and support local residents in preventing property damage. While Sepa and the Met Office continue to monitor the impact of the weather, and people should remain vigilant particularly around coastal areas and waterways, I am pleased to say that our investment in prevention and the fast acting work of our agencies means that, while some localised impacts were suffered, Scotland has not been exposed to the same level of flooding impacts and weather damage as other parts of the UK and as have been experienced in Scotland in previous years. The Met office is forecasting more unsettled weather over the next few days, and Mr Wheelhouse said he will update Parliament on preparations for the remainder of the winter period in a statement next week. He said: "We always look to learn the lessons from severe weather incidents in Scotland and other parts of the UK, and I am pleased that previous experiences have helped us to deliver a strong response, protecting properties and maintaining transport links." On Sunday afternoon, Sepa had ten flood warnings and 15 flood alerts in place across the country.