The latest stage of work to repair a crumbling cliff face looming over a tiny Aberdeenshire village has been completed.
A dozen specially-engineered nails – some as long as 40ft – have been drilled into the rock above Harbour Road in Gardenstown.
The route was forced shut at the end of last year following a landslide and work has been ongoing since then to prevent a repeat of the incident.
While it reopened on April 28, efforts to fully contain the stabilised rock face are continuing.
Last night residents received an update from Aberdeenshire Council confirming that the latest milestone in the project has been reached.
Construction workers had been using a drilling rig powered by compressed air to install 12 vertical soil nails into the bedrock. These were then sealed with grout.
During this period, they removed upwards of 40 tonnes of loose rock and soil as well as other debris and vegetation including three large trees.
They will now begin work on placing 140 soil anchors into the face of the slope to tighten a mesh which will hold it together.
Ward councillor Ross Cassie said: “It’s absolutely wonderful that the road has reopened, allowing normality to return to the village in its entirety.
“Obviously these works have secured the slope while a more permanent solution is found.”
The local authority has reminded motorists wishing to use Harbour Road that this next stage could result in some delays.
While it reopened with 24-hour access on April 27, a monitoring system was installed to automatically close it again if any “abnormal movement” is detected.
If the motion sensors are triggered, the route will remain shut until a rope access team has inspected the site.
During the upcoming works, which will take place between 8am and 4pm every day, there may be periods where traffic is delayed or blocked to allow equipment to be moved.
They will operate on a 12-day rotation with tools downed every second weekend.
In addition, workers will be banned from drilling or conducting other loud activities during church services on a Sunday.
