Our area
Community Resilience
Storms and power cuts are part of rural life here. A little preparation, and knowing who to call, makes a long night at home far easier to get through.
Who to call
Keep these numbers somewhere you can find them without a working internet connection. A note on the fridge is worth more than a bookmark when the power is off.
999
Any emergency where there is a danger to life, a fire, or a crime in progress.
105
Power cuts, free from any phone. It puts you straight through to the local network operator.
101
Police Scotland for anything that is not an emergency, including road obstructions.
111
NHS 24, for urgent health advice when your GP surgery is closed.
0800 0778 778
Scottish Water, for burst mains, loss of supply or water quality problems.
0345 988 1188
Floodline, for flood warnings and river levels across Scotland.
Community equipment
Worth knowing before you need it rather than while you are looking for it.
Defibrillators
- Dalton Village Hall, in the centre of the village
- Carrutherstown Primary School, available during school hours
Call 999 first. Ambulance control will tell you where the nearest defibrillator is and how to get into it, and they will keep talking you through what to do until help arrives.
First aid boxes
- Dalton Village Hall
- Carrutherstown Primary School, during school hours
- The Murray Arms and Thai Orchid
The Community Council also keeps its own first aid boxes, which come out for the meetings and events it runs.
Where to find local updates
When something is affecting the villages, a road closure, a long power cut or severe weather, we will put a coloured alert bar across the top of every page. If you can get online at all, that is the quickest place to check.
We also post to our Facebook group, which is often the fastest way for neighbours to share what they are seeing on the ground. For wider Dumfries and Galloway updates, the volunteer led DGVOST team is an excellent source during storms and floods.
Being ready for a power cut
Most of what helps costs very little and lives in a cupboard until the night you need it:
- a torch for each person, and spare batteries, rather than relying on candles
- a power bank, charged, so a phone lasts through the evening
- a battery or wind up radio, which will still get local news when the internet is down
- warm layers and a blanket, and a flask filled while the kettle still works
- bottled water and food that needs no cooking
- any regular medicines kept somewhere you can reach in the dark
- a printed copy of the numbers above, and of any number you would need for family
If severe weather is forecast, charging phones and filling a flask in advance takes five minutes and makes a real difference.
Useful organisations
These are the people we would point you to for advice before an emergency, and for information during one.
DGVOST
The Dumfries and Galloway Volunteer Operations Support Team, who coordinate volunteer help and share reliable local information during severe weather.
Ready Scotland
The Scottish Government’s practical advice on preparing your household for floods, storms, power cuts and other emergencies.
Dumfries & Galloway Council
Road closures, gritting, school closures, flooding and the council’s own emergency information for the region.
Our community resilience plan
The Community Council has been working with Dumfries and Galloway Council’s resilience officer on a resilience plan for Dalton and Carrutherstown: a practical document setting out who does what, and what help is available locally, if the villages are cut off or left without power for a long spell. A draft has been submitted to Dumfries and Galloway Council and approved. It is a living document, covering what can be done before an emergency, during one and in the recovery afterwards. A few finer points are still to be agreed, and the plan will be published on this page once it is ready.
In the meantime, the most useful thing any of us can do is the oldest one. If you know a neighbour who lives alone, is elderly, or would struggle in a long power cut, please look in on them. In two villages this size, that is what resilience actually looks like.