HEAVY rain and strong winds are expected to hit parts of Scotland over the next two days.

The Met Office has amber "be prepared" weather warnings in place for central Scotland while yellow "be aware" warnings cover much of the rest of the country.

Weather forecasters said the risk of flooding was widespread and could affect the west.

Flood alerts have also been issued for areas still recovering from severe weekend storms.

Gales and high tides forced the evacuation of dozens of people from their homes and left repair bills running to millions of pounds on Saturday and Sunday.

Ports and flood defences were damaged in Aberdeenshire and Berwick in what environment minister Paul Wheelhouse described as a "perfect storm" of low pressure, high tides and gales.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) is now warning of potential flooding and snow could fall in the highest areas.

Sepa hydrology manager Vincent Fitzsimons said: "There is a coastal flood risk for the latter part of today and throughout Friday for the north and east.

"Elsewhere, heavy persistent rain and gale- force south-easterly winds could affect the Southern Uplands and areas around the central belt such as Stirlingshire, Tayside and Angus."

During the storm on Friday, a crewman aboard North Sea stand-by vessel the Vos Sailor died after the boat was seriously damaged, and 11 others had to be winched to safety.

About 60 people were evacuated from properties in Stonehaven and Peterhead.

Mr Wheelhouse said: "The Scottish Government's resilience team is closely monitoring developments."

caroline.wilson@ eveningtimes.co.uk