A MAN who was caught running a £100,000 cannabis farm in his flat has been jailed for two years and eight months.

Jay Potter’s home in a quiet residential area of Forfar was raided by police after a tip-off that there was a “strong smell” of the drug coming from the property.

Drugs squad officers found 47 plants growing in the flat, in the Angus town’s Restenneth Drive, as well as a bag containing £1,500 worth of heroin.

Forfar Sheriff Court heard the haul at the jobless father-of-one’s home was worth up to £97,200 on the streets.

Fiscal depute Alan Kempton said: “Police received intelligence that drugs were being supplied from the locus, the address of accused Potter.

“Police attended and executed a search warrant, the accused was found within along with his former co-accused.

“There was a strong smell of cannabis within, and officers found 47 cannabis plants in total.

“If they all reached maturity and were harvested, the potential illicit value would have been between £32,400 and £97,200.

“This was based on a projected yield of between one and three ounces per bud, with each ounce priced at £180.

“Also during the search, a jacket was recovered hanging up, and diamorphine was found within, weighing 14.32 grams with an approximate street value of £1,430.

“The opinion of drugs unit officers was that the crop was about six to eight weeks old.

“When interviewed, accused Potter did not make any significant admissions.”

Appearing from custody Potter, 22, a prisoner at HMP Perth, pleaded guilty on indictment to producing and supplying cannabis between January 11 and March 11 this year, and supplying diamorphine on the latter date.

Not guilty pleas entered on behalf of a co-accused, Potter’s partner Koreen Farquharson, were accepted by the Crown.

Sheriff Pino di Emidio jailed Potter for a total of 32 months and described the crime as a “significant offence”.

A MAN managed to jump out of his vehicle with his dog seconds before it was engulfed in flames.

He then had to steer the burning Land Rover Discovery down a narrow one-way street lined with more than 12 parked cars, before he was helped by his boss.

Scott Baxter, 23, told the Tele today about the dramatic incident, which happened in Kirriemuir’s Duthie Street.

The slater was driving to work with his year-old cocker spaniel Orlo just before 7am.

He explained: “Just as I was approaching Kirrie I could see smoke coming up through the footwell of my car.

“It got pretty bad pretty quickly but I thought the best thing to do was to drive it straight to my boss Dave Simpson’s house in the Southmuir area of the town, as I wasn’t too far away at all.”

Scott said that as he drove into Dave’s street, however, things took a turn for the worse when the smoke thickened and began belching out of the car.

He then said flames appeared, adding: “I knew Orlo and I had to get out in a hurry but the car wouldn’t stop so I was aware I would have to keep it in a straight line even though it was well ablaze by this time.

“Poor Orlo didn’t have a clue what was going on — he really was in shock.”

After Scott jumped out he had to steer the car safely down the road.

He explained: “I couldn’t get my car to stop — nothing was working.

“So to get it away from all these other cars I had to lean in the window and steer it for the entire length of the road in case it crashed into anything else.

“It was awful, really scary. I reckon Orlo and I have had a pretty lucky escape. We could so easily have been so badly burned in the car.

“All the time I was pushing it down the street I was also terrified it was going to explode.

“It also crossed my mind that if it hit off any of the other cars we could have caused a whole street of cars to go on fire.

“It just doesn’t bear thinking about.”

Fortunately boss Dave spied the drama unfolding and rushed to help.

Dave, 49, said: “The car was engulfed in flames but we managed to push it onto my drive where we used buckets of water and my garden hose to start extinguishing the flames before the fire brigade arrived.”

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said: “We were called out at 7.10am to a car on fire on Friday. An appliance from Kirriemuir attended and used a hoswereel jet to extinguish the fire. We left the scene at 7.28am.

TAYSIDE health chiefs will be forced to cut their spending by up to £175 million in just five years, a shock new report has revealed.

Financial experts have said that the health board faces having to save an average of £35m a year from its budget in order to stay “financially sustainable”.

NHS Tayside previously told how it would have to save £33m this year alone — down from initial predictions of nearly £60m — with cuts set to come in workforce, drugs and prescribing and procurement.

The £175m would affect budgets between now and 2021, according to auditors PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Today, Dr Jean Turner, former chairwoman of the Scotland Patients’ Association, said that regardless of where cuts came from, it was “always the patients who suffer”.

She told the Tele: “Decisions are being made from a financial, rather than clinical, point of view, which can damage patient care.

“If you want to see a doctor for a diagnosis, you should be able to but often doctors are being substituted for nurses and nurses in turn are being substituted for care assistants, to save money. That dilutes the level of service.

“The board has patient targets it’s expected to meet, regarding seeing patients within a certain time period.

“They will throw money in these areas to hit these targets and that’s when they suddenly find they are in debt and need to save money.

“But if services need to be cut, it’s always the patient who suffers.”

The report, which scrutinised NHS finances, said: “The board recognises its historical shortfalls in delivering a high level of recurring savings on an annual basis.

“NHS Tayside’s Transformation Board has a key role directing the long-term sustainable change that delivers savings in the context of challenging demographic changes.

“The board acknowledges the significant challenges it faces.”

John McAllion, an executive member of the Dundee Pensioners’ Forum, said older people were not being given the service they needed.

Mr McAllion, who served as both an MP and MSP in Dundee, said: “The cuts NHS Tayside has to make are being passed on to the health and social care partnerships, which are jointly run by NHS Tayside and the local authorities.

“Because of this, the type of care simply isn’t being delivered to many of our older people.

“We have an ageing population, with more complex needs, so NHS Tayside is being asked to look after more people with less money from the Scottish and UK Governments.

“It’s not the fault of NHS Tayside and it’s certainly not the fault of the doctors or nurses who provide the service either.

“But, however savings are made, it’s going to be to the detriment of patient health somewhere.”

A spokeswoman for NHS Tayside said that all health boards in Scotland tried to “drive out waste” in its spending every year to ensure that frontline services are protected.

She added: “We know there will be increasing demand for all health and care services and, therefore, to address this, NHS Tayside has ambitious plans over the next five years to transform healthcare, both in our hospitals and in our communities, which means we will be able to continue to deliver sustainable, safe and high-quality care to thousands of people across Tayside.

“The redesign of services is being clinically-led, which means our doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals look at all the evidence and best practice before making decisions and implementing changes to our health and care services.

“The areas where we will be focusing our attention to make savings include tackling our nursing agency and locum doctor spending through new initiatives and looking at how we can get the best value from the equipment we buy.

“We know that prescribing expenditure across NHS Tayside has been increasing gradually over the last few years resulting in an overspend month-on-month. Through a range of initiatives, which include encouraging patients to have medication reviews and only ordering medication when they need it, we aim to improve the quality of prescribing, reduce waste and increase patient safety in the use of medicines, while reducing our spend on medicines.

“NHS Tayside also has the largest property footprint in the whole of the country. By reducing the number of older, not fit-for-purpose properties that are costly to maintain, we can provide better patient care facilities and improve the quality and location of our services.”

Police have warned the public to be on their guard after an elderly Tayside resident was conned out of thousands of pounds by bogus workman.

Officers were called to an address in Ravensby Park Gardens, Carnoustie after four men informed the resident that urgent repairs needed to be carried out.

They entered the roofspace of the property and, in the process, defrauded the victim of thousands of pounds in cash.

The incident took place on the morning Thursday June 23 and police were called at about 10.30am.

Police Scotland are now looking to track down those responsible.

One of the men is described as being between 25 and 35-years-old, about 5ft 8in tall and was wearing a dark padded jacket and dark-coloured trousers. He had dark-coloured greasy hair which was combed back.

The second man is described as being between 40 and 50-years-old, about 6ft tall, of heavy build, with dark hair and a large dark-coloured beard. He was wearing a grey hooded anorak and dark-coloured trousers.

The third man is described as being in his early 20s, about 5ft 11in tall, of slim build with fair hair and was wearing a red/pink coloured t-shirt.

The fourth man is described as being between 16 to 20-years-old, of slim build and was around 5ft 9in tall.

Anyone who has information that could assist officers with enquiries into this is encouraged to contact Police Scotland on 101.

In a statement, Police Scotland warned the public to be on their guard. It read: “Doorstep crime includes bogus callers and rogue traders or workmen. They take advantage of the trust and goodwill of householders and invariably target the elderly or more vulnerable members of the community.

“Cold callers can trick their way into homes under a false pretences with the intention of stealing cash and belongings, whilst bogus workmen will seek payment for shoddy work, or indeed money up front for work that is never carried out.

“Police Scotland urge residents to report any and every incident. The people responsible for this type of crime are very well practised in their approach. The more information the police receive about suspicious activity, the more this will assist officers in bringing offenders before the courts.”

NHS Tayside is in a “vicious circle” of overspending, a leading Dundee GP has admitted.

Dr Andrew Cowie, chairman of the Tayside Local Medical Committee, told the Tele that many GP practices in Tayside are at breaking point.

He spoke to the Tele following a report which revealed NHS Tayside needs to make £175 million of savings over the next five years.

Auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers has said the board will have to save an average of £35m a year from its budget in order to stay “financially sustainable”, with cuts set to come in workforce, drugs and prescribing and procurement.

Dr Cowie, who is a GP at Dundee’s Hawkhill Medical Centre, said: “Some facilities are at breaking point.

“To save money, one of the key areas is always going to be staffing. There’s only so much pressure you can put on staff before they decide they are going somewhere else.

“So then, you are forced to employ agency staff, and end up in this kind of ‘death spiral’, where you are paying these huge amounts of money.

“You have situations where four GPs are sometimes doing the work of six. There will come a point where that is simply impossible — you can’t do it any more.

“That’s why we’ve recently seen practices like Whitfield and Lochee taken over by the board as doctors just couldn’t keep up with the demand. The same happened in Brechin.

“If you don’t have the GPs, you reduce primary care, which is the most efficient way of dealing with patients.

“That puts more strain on facilities like Ninewells as you have more people going to A&E or hospital, using more specialist care and the cost spirals in this “vicious circle” situation.

“More people will be in Ninewells and beds will be filling up. If there are no beds then surgeries will be cancelled and waiting times will go up.

“So, the board has to pour money into working weekends, or sending patients to outside, private healthcare providers at a relatively large cost.

“Legally, these patients have to be treated, so it has to be done. You can’t abandon people.”

An NHS Tayside spokeswoman said that, like all health boards in Scotland, it was trying to “drive out waste in its spending every year to ensure that frontline services were protected” and had “ambitious plans” over the next five years to “transform healthcare”.

Fears this year’s Carnoustie Gala Parade could be cancelled have been allayed following a last-minute flurry of volunteers.

With under a week to go, the gala committee had to appeal for help after the organisers were advised by police that the event couldn’t go ahead without more people to assist on the day.

Chairwoman Mary Bushnell said that police had advised there had to be sufficient stewarding in place.

And the organisers feared if they didn’t have enough volunteers they might have had to cancel the event.

She said: “That certainly wasn’t a great position to be in with under a week to go.

“But, through word of mouth, people have stepped in — very quickly as well — and the parade can now go ahead.”

Mary said although enthusiasm among locals is always high, she was concerned by a reluctance of people to get involved in the parade itself.

She said: “There’s not as many lorries this year but there will still be a really good turnout and the lorries we have are amazing.

“Some have pulled out from illness but some don’t like the theme. It’s ‘Real Carnival’ — so that means anything that relates to a street party. But I’m not sure people understood this, so we will be working and improving on that next year.”

Carnoustie community councillor Stuart Richard agreed there had been challenges in getting people involved in putting on displays.

But he added that enthusiasm for the parade was as high as ever.

He said: “It’s been a struggle — logistics and costs have deterred organisations and businesses from getting involved.

“But more people than ever are wanting to watch it. It creates a great feeling in the town. We’re a wonderful community and this parade brings us all together once a year — it’s the main event in the Carnoustie calendar.”

The parade begins at 1pm at the Panmure Industrial Estate and arrives at Carnoustie House Grounds at 2pm.

The parade will be led by the Carnoustie and District Pipe Band. There will be stalls and activities, aimed at raising funds for the community.

A police spokeswoman said: “Police Scotland, along with the local authority, will assist with traffic management. It is the responsibility of the event organisers to have sufficient stewarding to ensure public safety.”

COMMUNITIES across Dundee and Angus are set to enjoy a series of fun events starting this weekend.

In Dundee, the annual Coldside fun day is on tomorrow at Hilltown Park, running from noon until 4pm.

The event will have a selection of children’s rides, bungee trampolines and entertainment from local bands, singers and dancers.

There will also be a climbing tower, face painting and Mad Hatter’s tea party — and event organisers have promised that lots more will be on offer on the day.

Elaine Pratt, Coldside communities officer, encouraged locals to get out and about to support the event.

She said: “We have so much planned for the day, regardless of the weather.

“We have loads of up-and-coming locals bands playing, a climbing wall and face painting.

“It is going to be brilliant and there will be something for everyone to enjoy.

“It will be loads of fun so come along and have a great time, meet your neighbours and enjoy yourselves.”

There will also be a consultation stall at the event with information on the former Derby Street multi site.

Meanwhile, one of the main events on the community calendar — Broughty Ferry Gala Week — kicks off on Sunday from 1pm at Castle Green.

Gerry Stewart, the gala committee chairwoman, who runs Hotel Broughty Ferry, told the Tele: “I hope it is a nice sunny day for everyone to come down and enjoy what we have on offer.

“We have music, a beer tent, the Royal Regiment of Scotland motorbike show and so much more.”

Carnoustie’s annual gala takes place on Saturday, too, at the Carnoustie House grounds from 1pm. The parade — a favourite with locals — starts from Panmure Industrial Estate at 1pm and arrives at Carnoustie House at about 1.45pm.

Another event that locals can look forward to this weekend is the wet and wonderful Dundee Waterfest 2016. Ancrum Outdoor Centre, which is behind the event, will be on hand to give people a taste of watersports like sea kayaking, powerboating, and other seafaring activities at Broughty Ferry Harbour tomorrow at 10am.

People attending are asked to bring along a towel — and a sense of adventure.

The city-wide music festival Almost Blue also kicked off today and will run all weekend, with a host of live events in pubs and clubs across the city, finishing in the wee small hours of Monday.

A TEENAGER, who had just learned first aid, heroically helped tend to two men who were injured in a two-vehicle smash — including one who was trapped.

Gregor Melville was walking to meet friends from his gran’s house near the junction of North Burnside Street and Dundee Street, Carnoustie, when two cars collided just metres in front of him.

The youngster, who has just started third year at Carnoustie High School, said adrenaline took over as he leapt to help one the injured men.

He said: “The Audi went into the wall beside me and the other car smashed into the wall on the other side.

“I have done first aid training with cadets. I knew what I had to do and just did it.”

Two other people quickly attended the scene, a nurse and a carer.

The three of them then set about making sure that both drivers were in a stable condition and alerting emergency services.

Gregor said that he saw the Audi driver’s head smash into the windscreen before he got out and began to run away from the smoking vehicle with blood pouring from a wound to his head.

He said that the driver in the other car was trapped and seemed to be unable to free himself from the wreckage.

He added: “I just tried to keep him talking. He kept on repeating himself and I tried to distract him from the situation.

“He was complaining that he had pain in his neck, so I just tried to keep him talking until an ambulance came.

“I knew that I had to keep him talking because he couldn’t remember anything about what had happened. He was really confused. I just wanted to help as much as I could.

“I don’t like blood. I almost fainted when my dog was bleeding once, but my instincts and first aid training took over.

“Everyone took turns holding a jumper on the man’s head to try to stop the bleeding.

“I said everyone should take turns because the first aid training warns that you can get tired.”

Police, the fire service and two ambulances attended the scene of the crash, which happened just before 7pm on Sunday.

Gregor left around an hour later to walk home, saying he was worried he would miss his 8pm curfew.

A spokesman for the Scottish Ambulance Service said: “We received a call shortly before 7pm to attend a two-vehicle road traffic accident.

“Two ambulances attended and two patients were taken to Ninewells Hospital in a stable condition.”

Hundreds of homes in Dundee and Angus were left without electricity after a power cut this morning.

SSE confirmed the outage, which was first reported at 8.15am, in the north east of the city and in to Angus.

In total, 400 customers were affected. Two postcodes in the DD3 area and 39 DD4 postcodes are without power.

The cut also led to delays on the roads after traffic lights on the A90 failed.

A spokeswoman for BEAR Scotland said: “The Forfar Road traffic lights were affected by a power cut in the area for a short period this morning.  The power has now been restored by the provider, and we have attended site to ensure the lights are fully operational.”

The exact cause of the power cut is not known at this stage, though engineers were on sight to restore the service.

Power was fully restored at about 10.15am.

A spokeswoman for SSE said: “The power cut was discovered at 8.15am and 400 homes were affected.

“We’d like to apologise to any customers affected by the loss of supply.”

Any customers looking for more information should call SSE on 0800 300 999 and quote reference ‘BA6153’.

A man who snuck into a woman’s home and sexually assaulted her as she slept has been jailed for 18 months at Dundee Sheriff Court.

James Dutracy, 30, previously admitted entering the woman’s home, in the Forfar area, without her permission and committing a sex act on her as she slept on June 13 last year.

The court previously heard that Dutracy had tried to kiss the woman earlier that evening when the two had been socialising in her home.

Dutracy left the property at around 8.30pm, and made an inappropriate sexual remark about the woman to her young baby.

The woman fell asleep watching television. When she woke, she found that Dutracy was carrying out a sex act on her.

She ordered him out of the house and as Dutracy fell to the floor she noticed that his trousers were unfastened and pulled down. The woman told Dutracy to leave but did not contact police as she thought no one would believe her.

Four days later, Dutracy contacted the woman to apologise but she told him it was not good enough and convinced him to hand himself into the police.

Defending Ian Flynn said that his client was still of the opinion that there had been an “invited sexual connection” earlier that day.

However, Sheriff Alastair Brown said that this was at odds with police statements given by both the accused and the complainer.

Sentencing Dutracy to 18 months imprisonment, Sheriff Brown said: “It is quite clear that when a woman is sleeping she cannot give consent.

“It is also quite clear that the woman had refused consent to any other sexual contact earlier in the day.

“If it is the case that there has been some kind of sexual agreement earlier that day, that does not carry on later. Consent cannot be given in the past then assumed to still be valid. Consent is an ongoing condition of agreement and a person sleeping cannot give consent.

“You entered this woman’s house without consent and not only violated her sexually, you also violated the privacy of her home.”

Dutracy was also put on the sex offenders register for 10 years.

Police have launched a search for an elderly dementia sufferer who has gone missing.

Linda Stewart was last seen at about 10.30am today on Carnoustie’s Barry Road.

The 78-year-old is easily confused and concern is growing as to her whereabouts.

Linda is described as being 4ft 10in tall, of slim/frail build. She has noticeable scratches on her face after a recent fall.

When last seen she was wearing a pink Arran-style cardigan, pink raincoat, blue shirt with blue trousers and carrying a black and white Zebra print bag.

Anyone who knows where Linda is or who has information that could assist Tayside Division in tracing her should call 101 or speak to any police officer.

The annual Broughty Ferry Gala Week kicked off with a bang yesterday as people of all ages enjoyed the Gala Fete at Castle Green.

The town’s summer festival has been a hugely popular and regular event since the early 1900s and is now regarded as the foremost summer community festival in Tayside.

Organised by The Broughty Ferry Traders’ Association, the week-long packed programme of daily and evening events cater for children of all ages and adults alike.

Also taking place yesterday was the Coldside Gala Day held in Hilltown Park.

And on Saturday, Carnoustie’s Gala Week was brought to a close. Music, Minions, face-painting and fundraising kept folk entertained, while ice cream and cake stalls provided much-needed nourishment.

Are you pictured in any of these photos? They are available to buy from photoshopscotland.newsprints.co.uk.

A 700-year-old declaration of Scottish independence has been recognised by a world heritage body for its international significance.

The Declaration of Arbroath, a letter from Scottish barons to the Pope in 1320 pledging their resistance to English rule, has been awarded special status in the Unesco Memory of The World Register.

Scottish Culture, Tourism and External Affairs Secretary Fiona Hyslop, who has campaigned for Scottish independence throughout her political career, said she was moved to inspect the document which has been preserved under lock and key for over a decade.

She said the Declaration’s “clarion call… may well be important in years to come”, as she prepares to defend Scotland’s place in Europe following the UK decision to leave the European Union against the wishes of Scottish voters.

Elizabeth Oxborrow-Cowan, chair of the UK Committee at the Unesco Memory of the World Programme, said the timing of the Declaration’s recognition – at a time of UK and European upheaval and the day after American Independence Day – was “a complete coincidence”.

Ms Hyslop said: “The Declaration of Arbroath is the most iconic document we have in Scotland – it has inspired people throughout the generations – and to see it recognised globally by Unesco is really important.

“It was an international appeal for recognition to the Pope at the time, but it resonates throughout the generations.

“It’s a real privilege to stand before a document that is so fragile and very rarely seen in public.

“On a personal level it is very moving to see a document that has meant so much to so many people, and to supporters of independence for so many generations.”

She added: “That message and clarion call that brings together a nation to declare something internationally is something that was important in 1320, and may well be important in the years to come.”

Some historians believe the Declaration of Arbroath inspired the American Declaration of Independence, which was introduced on July 4 1776 and is commemorated every year as American Independence Day.

Ms Hyslop said: “Three years ago on American Independence Day I gave a speech on independence at Philadelphia Hall.

“There were so many Scots who signed the American Declaration who, through their education, would have known of the Declaration of Arbroath and some of the wording in this declaration appears again in the American Declaration.”

Ms Oxborrow-Cowan said: “There is no doubt that its declaration of nationhood, of restraining the powers of a monarch and its demands for freedom, are themes that have resonated through the ages.

“This is a document that has a significance far beyond what its creators could have imagined.”

She said of the timing of the recognition: “We have a two-year programme with various processes, and we have to wait for the documents to be publicly announced so this is one of a series of documents being announced this year.

“To be truthful, the nature of the subject of the document is such that you couldn’t have found a period in the last 700 years when it wouldn’t have been without some public interest.”

A TAYSIDE couple has spoken of the “enormous void” left in their lives after the death of their 42-year-old son.

Simon Massie, of Arbroath, died following a spell of illness.

He had battled a serious bowel problem in the months leading up to his death.

Simon was surrounded by loved ones when he passed away this month at Ninewells Hospital.

Today, his parents Brenda, 71, and Alan Massie, 72, paid tribute to their son who led a “good life”, despite having to cope with his learning difficulties from birth.

Brenda said: “He became ill on April 14.

“He had a bowel condition and had a perforation of the bowel and sepsis.

“Simon had a respiratory arrest while he was on the way to recovering from that and his heart stopped.

“They revived him and took him back to the intensive care unit but in the end they had to take him off the ventilator and machines.”

Brenda and Alan described Simon as “very independent” and also “resourceful”.

He would be seen regularly working out at the Arbroath Sports Centre and Saltire Centre.

He was well-known to shop keepers and bus drivers alike, who would always look out for him.

Simon was described by his parents as “a man of few words” but “always cheerful and full of life”.

Brenda said: “Simon went to the gym a lot and would use the treadmill and he would also go to an aqua fitness class.

“He would like to wander around the streets and would buy CDs.

“He liked pop music and he had all the Now CD compilations.

“He was a determined person.

“You couldn’t keep him in and he had his routines.

“Having his mobile phone was good because we could always find him that way and pick him up, but he was always back before tea time.

“We are proud of him.

“I am just happy he was so accepted in Arbroath. People would look out for him.

“Everybody in Arbroath would meet him from time to time.

“He did what he wanted to do and we always felt that people would look out for him.

“I’m happy that he was able to have a good life.”

The family said Simon has left “an enormous void” after passing away on July 2.

His parents also wanted to express their “immense gratitude for the wonderful care” given to Simon by the staff of ICU Ninewells.

They also gave thanks for the “support and tolerance of all the local people for the freedom Simon enjoyed to live life to the full”.

Simon was also a regular visitor to Dundee as he would often jump on buses to go shopping in the city centre.

Simon leaves behind Brenda, Alan, brother Steven, 51, and sister Claire, 46.

A celebration of Simon’s life will take place at George Stewart Funeral Directors Chapel of Rest, Millgate Loan, Arbroath, tomorrow at 11am.

Thereafter mourners can go to Western Cemetery, to which all family and friends are respectfully invited.

Donations can be made at the chapel door to Enable Scotland.

A hedgehog had to be rescued after becoming trapped down a drain hole.

The Scottish SPCA was called out after the small animal was found to be in distress at Warddykes Primary School in Arbroath.

An animal rescue officer from the charity was aided by tradesmen who were carrying out work at the school at the time on Friday.

The female hedgehog was uninjured during the ordeal and is now recovering at her new woodland home.

SSPCA officer Coreen Hill said she was fortunate the tradesmen were on hand to help out with the rescue.

She said: “I was lucky enough to be given help by two gentlemen from Tayside Mechanical Services who were working at the school at the time.

“They were able to use their tools to flatten my swan hook so I could carefully slide it past her and turn it slowly to cradle her to pull her out of the hole.

“Thankfully she was uninjured and apart from being very hungry she was okay.

“She has settled in to garden life not too far from where I live and she has been seen venturing out and about.

“Her new home had lots of places for her to hide as well as a good supply of food with the added benefit of a woodland area nearby if she wishes to venture there.

“I’d like to thank the gentlemen who were more than happy to help me with the rescue and I’m so glad this story has a happy ending.”

Anyone who discovers an injured or distressed wild animal should call the Scottish SPCA animal helpline on 03000 999 999.

FIRE crews across Tayside and Fife have helped rescue dozens of animals from awkward or dangerous situations, new figures have revealed.

Data released under the Freedom of Information Act showed that firefighters in the region were called to 113 incidents that involved the rescue of an animal between July 1 2014 and June 30 2016.

Although the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service couldn’t specify what animals were involved, the vast majority were for domestic creatures such as dogs, cats, rodents, birds and horses.

One of the most memorable incidents happened in December 2014 when a crew was called to Keptie Pond in Arbroath after a dog fell through the ice while chasing a duck.

The majority of the call-outs have come in Fife — but fire crews were called out almost as many times in Dundee as in the more rural areas of Perthshire and Angus.

One incident in the Kirriemuir area required the involvement of 10 appliances and 34 firefighters after a domestic animal had to be rescued from height.

Crews have also been called to lift heavy animals on farms or rescue animals from “below ground”. A spokesman for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said firefighters were not only employed to help people in distress.

He said: “While our priority is of course the safety of the public, we are also a humane service.

“This is a nation of animal lovers – in many cases they are part of the family, so the public expects us to do what we can to prevent them from being killed or enduring needless suffering.

“Animals are often important to the economy, with their loss having a significant impact on local businesses.

“Where animals get into difficulty we consider the full circumstances to provide a response that is appropriate to the specific situation.

“That always includes assessing the extent of danger to the animal, the resources needed to safely rescue it and the risk to firefighters taking part, as well as the possibility of the public being harmed should individuals attempt to intervene.”

He added: “People can be assured we always have the resources needed to respond to any emergency.

“We are fully prepared to attend more than one incident at a time, and when our crews are involved in the rescue of an animal we still have firefighters and resources available to respond wherever they are needed.”

A TAYSIDE boy with a rare genetic condition was rushed to hospital on his way to Disneyland Paris.

Blake McMillan, four, was born with MECP2 Duplication Syndrome — an extremely rare genetic condition that means he has trouble moving and speaking and is prone to respiratory infections.

The Carnoustie boy, along with his six-year-old sister Faye, were surprised when their mum Jenny, 39, announced last week they were off for a trip to Disneyland in the French capital.

But on their way, the youngster was rushed to hospital in Stoke with breathing difficulties.

Jenny told the Tele of the experience that almost ended in tragedy.

She said: “Blake had been doing really well for about four or five weeks and I had been saving up to take him and his sister Faye to Disneyland.

“We kept it a secret because we weren’t sure if Blake would be OK.

“We were driving because Blake can’t fly and we got to Stoke and stopped for the night. Blake wasn’t doing well.

“We ended up going to the local hospital in an ambulance at 3am and he was put on a ventilator.”

Blake was given a course of antibiotics and after Jenny explained the situation to the doctors he was given the go ahead to make the trip.

In a further scare, Jenny realised they had forgotten the medication in the hotel fridge, meaning that she had to fork out £100 for a replacement prescription in France.

Jenny, who arrived with her family in Paris on Friday, said she had repeatedly thought about cancelling the trip but had decided to take the chance.

She added: “You just need to make a decision based on what you think is best at the time. It’s been hard but we are trying to make the most of it.

“I’d have hated for Blake and Faye to miss out on the chance to go to Disneyland.”

POLICE say that a human jawbone found near a Tayside beach could be “decades old” — but the identity of the person it belonged to still isn’t known.

An investigation was launched in January after the discovery of the remains at Lunan Bay, between Arbroath and Montrose.

Officers cordoned off the beach as a sweep of the area was carried out and forensic experts were brought in.

Relatives of missing people in the area were also informed of the discovery.

Today, a police spokeswoman told the Tele that the death of the person was not thought to have been suspicious.

She said: “Police Scotland can confirm that the fragment of bone recovered at Lunan Bay is non-recent and there have been no apparent suspicious circumstances identified in connection with the incident.

“The families of known missing people in Tayside have been contacted and advised.”

The spokeswoman added: “There is no person identified in connection with the bone fragment found.

“I am unable to give an exact timeframe. However, expert opinion is that it is decades old.”

The bone was found near a coastal path, just behind Redcastle Farm in Inverkeilor, south of the Lunan Water, by a member of the public.

Police taped off an area of long grass between the bay and the path, as a team of eight combed the area.

However, no further fragments of bone were discovered.

The jawbone was believed to have been washed up following a series of high tides and stormy weather.

It was later handed to pathologists, who have since worked to identify the age and sex of the person that it belonged to.

A MAN who lost his right arm after a horrific crash on a Tayside road today told how he wants the authorities to “throw the book” at the driver responsible.

Neil Black, 31, was travelling home from work in March last year when Dundee man William Brierley ploughed into his Volkswagen Golf in a Mercedes lorry after ignoring warning signs at Inverkeilor railway bridge in Angus.

The 54-year-old trucker admitted the offence in court last week.

Neil told the Tele of the long list of traumatic injuries he suffered in the crash — and hit out at Brierley, who he says has never apologised for his part in the incident.

He said: “I want the book thrown at him. If it was me who had been driving the lorry, his family would want it thrown in my face. It was all his fault and it was down to his own negligence and stupidity. Now I have to live my life with one arm. Prosthetics are no use to me because the shoulder is fused.

“I don’t look to get anything from anyone but if that was me who was driving, I would be riddled with guilt and try my best to make sure I could help him or his family in any way possible. He hasn’t done anything — he hasn’t even said sorry.”

Brierley was towing a trailer on the A92 between Arbroath and Montrose when he collided with the bridge and caused the head-on crash.

Neil said he was conscious as he lay in the mangled wreckage of his car.

He lost six pints of blood on the way to hospital and later lapsed into a coma — with medics and emergency services stunned that he survived.

The impact left him with multiple, life-changing injuries and ultimately resulted in him losing his right arm after a number of surgeries.

He added: “My left foot was left hanging on by the skin. I needed to have a fixator fitted for six weeks. I had 10 broken ribs on my right side, a punctured lung, my right shoulder was smashed, I had a fractured skull, and bleeding on the brain.

“I also had a broken nose and cuts to my face and left hand. My right arm was wrapped around the passenger seat. I ended up with my back against the passenger door.

“My seat belt completely snapped off with the force of the impact. I was awake at the scene and all the way to hospital, and I lost six pints of blood. I needed to have three blood transfusions before I was operated on, and my scalp was deroofed.”

Neil says he had to relearn how to do everything he had once taken for granted and added: “It has affected me in every way but I have learned to train my brain again. I had never realised about phantom limb pain before it happened but when I woke up from my coma I could feel every injury I had on my arm that wasn’t there.

“With a broken leg, the pain stops after a while but this went on for months and is still going to this day.

“I need to take painkillers constantly and nerve stimulants every day. That was a card I was dealt, not one I played.”

Last week, at Forfar Sheriff Court, Brierley, of Charleston Road, Dundee, pleaded guilty on indictment to a charge of dangerous driving.

Sentence for Brierley was deferred.

A handful of sex offenders are living in Tayside under new identities — and many of them at different addresses, the Tele can reveal.

Five people who have been placed on the sex offenders register for committing crimes including downloading indecent images of children and lewd and libidinous behaviour have changed their names by deed poll.

Four of them have also changed their addresses, with some of them having committed the offences in other parts of Scotland.

The information was revealed through a Freedom of Information request to the Tele.

But, police would not state the offenders’ names — saying that it would lead to them being identified.

Two of the offenders live in Dundee, with another two in Perth and one in Angus.

The law states that criminals on the register have to tell police within three days if they decide to change their name.

Keiran Watson — a project coordinator for the Dundee charity Eighteen and Under, — said: “I think there should be a period of time before they can change their identity — something like 10 years for someone on the lower end of the scale would be appropriate, but for violent sex offenders I don’t think they should ever be allowed to change their name.”

A Police Scotland spokeswoman said: “We’d point out that members of the public are legally entitled to change their name. The Sexual Offences Act 2003, Section 84, requires a relevant offender to, within three days, notify use of a name which has not previously been notified to police. Failure to do so constitutes an offence punishable by up to five years imprisonment. Protecting the public is a top priority for Police Scotland.

“In Scotland, robust Multi Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) provide a comprehensive response to a complex issue, using professional assessment and management to properly target resources at those who pose a risk to the public.

“Police Scotland works in partnership with a number of agencies through MAPPA to ensure that all Registered Sex Offenders are robustly managed within the community. While we can never eliminate risk entirely, we want to reassure communities all reasonable steps are being taken to protect them.”