A "major incident" has been declared in a Scottish Borders town with more than 500 properties advised to prepare for possible evacuation due to risk of flooding, police have confirmed.
The local council warned that the River Teviot in Hawick had risen overnight and was due to peak for a second time in a matter of hours at 5pm today.
The torrential rain has already seen schools shut and travel disruptions in the likes of Dumfries and Galloway, with roads underwater.
A landslide has also seen the closure of the B725 near Bankend.
Twenty flood warnings have been put in place by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency with a band of heavy rain marauding through the south and west of the country.
Residents in Hawick living in at-risk areas were this morning being encouraged to make plans for abandoning their homes - with a widespread evacuation now being led by Police Scotland.
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Chief Inspector Vinnie Fisher said officers are monitoring the situation closely and had already started clearing properties around the River Teviot.
"We are working with our colleagues at the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and Scottish Borders Council to safely move all of those affected and ensure they are appropriately accommodated for the time being," he said.
"I would urge the public to avoid travel within the region unless absolutely necessary and to pay attention for more information as we continue to respond to this matter."
People with flood protection products are advised to put these in place as a precaution in the meantime.
A multi-agency Emergency Control Centre has been set up and is monitoring the situation closely across the Scottish Borders, alongside Met Office staff and SEPA colleagues.
It comes as the Met Office has issued amber and yellow rain warnings across the UK for Thursday and Friday.
Life threatening downpours have descended on northern England with an incredible 13 inches - a month’s worth of rain - falling in Cumbria in just 36 hours.
Some properties and businesses were flooded following near record breaking rainfall which saw a “school rulers worth” of rainfall on Honister Pass in the north west in 24 hours.
The Lake District is currently almost entirely underwater, with the Windermere ferry having to stop work to the "excessive" rain.
The popular tourist attraction warned they were likely to be closed on Friday too because they are unable to “land safely”.
And the Met Office is also warning of more heavy downpours to come with flooding possible in the south west and South Wales.
The Environment Agency (EA) issued ten alerts, where flooding is expected and 19 areas, where flooding was possible on Thursday as they warned of “significant flooding” in the north west.
