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Flood pod and sandbags

The flood pod is a container of absorbent sandbags and floodgates. It can be moved quickly to where it is needed most in the region by the fire and rescue service.

We also have a smaller flood trailer. These are operated by our staff who can loan flood protection equipment to you in an emergency.

To find out where the flood pod and trailer are:

Protection of your property from flooding is your responsibility. When you borrow equipment from the pod we'll offer you a free flood survey at a later date. If eligible, you'll get a chance to buy reduced cost equipment from the subsidised flood products scheme.

Get sandbags

We have a limited number of sandbags available to the public. During extreme weather events you can collect them from road depots: 

  • Monday to Thursday, 9am to 3pm
  • Friday, 9am to midday
  • public holidays, no service

The depots are at:

  • Commerce Road, Stranraer DG9 7DD
  • Newton Stewart recycling centre, Barnkirk, Newton Stewart DG8 6QD
  • Castle Douglas recycling centre, Abercromby Road Industrial Estate, Abercromby Road, Castle Douglas DG7 1LH
  • Wayside Depot, Annan Road, Dumfries DG1 3JX
  • Harthill depot, Lockerbie DG11 2SE

During extreme weather events and to meet local demand, we also issue pallets to specific locations for collection by members of the public. This will be in our order of priority, which is:

  1. Prevent loss of life or serious injury.
  2. Maintain access for emergency vehicles.
  3. Secure the safety of the roads network.
  4. Protect key community facilities and persons at risk.
  5. Protect a number of residential properties.
  6. Protect a number of business/commercial properties.
  7. Protect an individual residential property.
  8. Protect an individual commercial property.

Pallets of sandbags will not be delivered to communities before any unpredicted event, for example before winter.

This free service should not be relied upon. If you think you'll need sandbags during bad weather you should get a supply of sandbags.

Sandbags are available from most builders merchants or DIY centres. Sandbags offer only limited protection for properties, keeping water out for short periods. This can be improved by using them with plastic sheeting. 

You can also consider property-level protection, including floodgates, automatic air bricks and non-return valves. These are more effective at keeping water out than sandbags. Purpose-made property flood resilience measures can be bought through the subsidised flood products scheme.