Scottish and Southern Energy has launched an investigation into the incident, caused when one of its underground pipes, in the hillside above Turns Road, ruptured at around 2.30am on Sunday.

The resulting torrent of water washed soil, sand and sediment into homes and across the village's two bridges into Lower Foyers - putting the community's only usable bridge out of action.

Debris and flooding also caused the one access route into the village to be closed until almost 12 hours after the pipe burst.

"We were stuck - just cut off completely," said Alex Nicol, a Stratherrick and Foyers community councillor, who lives in Riverside. "This just highlights how vulnerable the village is."

Residents have already presented a petition to Highland Council, insisting a new bridge is built over the River Foyers because their one remaining bridge is vulnerable to flooding and may have to be closed in extreme conditions.

"It's no good them (council officials) saying flooding only happens once every 10 years or so," added Mr Nicol, who wants the concerns to be discussed at a community council meeting today. "Something has got to be done."

The community was hit by the closure of its pedestrian bridge in January following concerns from council engineers that it was unsafe.

The one remaining bridge, a military style Bailey bridge, links one part of the village to the other and can take traffic but has no footpath.

Aird and Loch Ness SNP councillor Drew Hendry called for urgent action from the council, stating the incident should serve as a major wake up call.

"Residents are rightly concerned that they might find themselves literally cut off in the event of extreme weather conditions," he said.

"What happened was pretty close to what we were worried about. I have written to the council about the need for emergency provision at Foyers and the need to prioritise that.

"A closure of the Bailey bridge, for whatever reason, means no way in and no way out. In an emergency it may be life or death. In extreme weather the possibilities of a boat or helicopter helping out would likely have to be discounted and, of course, no vehicles could attend."

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