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World Bulletin/News Desk

Heavy rain and flooding hit large swathes of Scotland on Friday, bursting riverbanks, turning roads into torrents and stranding people in their homes.

Britain's Met (meteorological) Office warned the region to brace for nearly a month's worth of rain - as much as 80 mm - over 48 hours.

Local media reported several people had been trapped in buildings and emergency services had rescued drivers stuck in cars in Fife and Tayside in the east of Scotland.

"My neighbour was just rescuing my cats - he didn't realise I was in. Thank God he came and got us because I'd be waving at you from the top window instead of being here at the moment," Fife resident Storm Hughes told BBC Scotland.

"The scale of the damage is astronomical. I am missing half my house, I'm missing the whole road ... nothing is left."

Richard Brown, head of Hydrology for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency said conditions were expected to improve on Saturday.

The agency has more than 30 flood warnings in effect, mainly for Tayside, Dundee and Angus in the east of Scotland and the Borders in the south.

"We would encourage people in the areas potentially at risk to remain vigilant and be mindful of the conditions in their locality and when travelling," Brown said.