The Met Office has issued a red weather warning for rain across parts of Scotland.
Storm Babet is expected to bring “exceptional rainfall” which will cause severe flooding and risk to life on Thursday.
The worst affected areas are set to be around Angus, Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire.
The weather warning runs from 18:00 on Thursday until noon on Friday.
ScotRail has warned people travelling on Thursday and Friday to check journeys in advance, with Storm Babet “likely to cause disruption to services”.
Aberdeenshire Council is urging residents to take advantage of sandbags to help protect properties.
The local authority was holding a resilience meeting on Wednesday morning.
Perth and Kinross Council said it would close all of its floodgates on Wednesday, with the exception of those at the Queen’s Bridge, which the authority said would be closed “should this become necessary.”
The authority was previously criticised over its delay in closing the North Inch floodgates during heavy rain and rising water levels earlier this month, which led to properties and businesses being flooded as a result.
Storm Babet, a complex area of low pressure which developed to the west of the Iberian Peninsula, was named by the Met Office on Monday morning.
People in others parts of the UK and Ireland are also being warned about the approach of the rain and wind.
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