23 Jun 2012

Clear up begins after night of heavy flooding

A major clear up operation is launched in the north of England after a night of heavy downpours forces families from homes. Environment officials tell Channel 4 News ‘it’s a difficult balancing act’.

This morning, the Environment Agency had issued around 140 flood warnings and alerts in northern regions after more than a month’s worth of rain fell overnight.

Although the number of warnings and alerts had dropped to around 70 by late afternoon, more than 11,000 homes and businesses were still being protected by flood defences, and owners of 7,000 properties were issued with warnings.

Families who had been evacuated from properties in Lancashire were forced to spend the night in temporary accommdation because the rivers had burst their banks.

Many blamed the Environment Agency for offering sandbags to homes which had already been flooded, rather than those still facing floods.

Although Mark Scott, of the Agency, admitted that amid budget cuts, “it’s a difficult balancing act”, he insisted that working with other partners had ensured they were doing their best.

“It’s not something that can’t be worked through with the Environment Agency working together [with other partners].”

Later today, residents in the village of Croston, who had earlier fled their homes, began to return to clear up the area after the River Yarrow burst its banks and flooded more than 70 homes.

Jon Lilley, 32, landlord of Croston’s Wheatsheaf, said that today, he and staff will attempt to pump water out of the cellar and clean up the rest of the pub.

He said: “The water just coming closer and closer. We tried to wedge the doors as best we could, but we lost the battle at about 2am and it came through the sandbags. I’ve lost my beer. My beer is floating. My plants have floated off down the road.”

‘Slow response’

Some residents were taken to the nearby Darwen Leisure Centre, fleeing homes in Croston and Darwen, near Chorley. It is expected that they will return home today.

Richard Jones, 46, of Croston, said: “We were expecting flooding throughout the day because of the torrential rain. It seems to me though that the Environment Agency weren’t expecting it and certainly the local council weren’t expecting it.

“So it was no surprise to us that 11.30pm last night, the flood waters entered the house at the rear of the property and flooded the whole of the ground floor to a couple of inches. Pretty desperate business this morning with the village pulling together, but a pretty poor service from the people that we would have expected it from.”

Localised flashflooding also hit households in Greater Manchester where water was said to be waist-high in some areas.

In nearby Wigan, firefighters were called in to clear floodwater, helping three people and a dog away from their properties by boat.

The adverse weather conditions also brought havoc to Cumbria. Up to 100mm of rain hit the area of Borrowdale overnight. South-west Scotland, Northern Ireland and Lancashire also experienced unusually heavy rainfall.

People are forced to leave their homes after torrential downpours bring flooding to swathes of northern England.

Mud sliding

Strong winds and heavy rain meant that the Great North Swim in Cumbria on Friday was postponed until Sunday.

But the rain failed to dampen spirits at the Isle of Wight festival, where revellers were pictured sliding around in thick mud.

Some 92 flood warnings remain in place across northern England, and 47 flood alerts. Another three flood alerts are in operation across the South West and Wales.

Severe weather warnings have also been issued for these areas. Although forecasters have said the water levels will begin to recede, a band of wet weather expected to sweep the country tonight may slow down the clear-up process, and some areas could remain swamped.

Forecasts suggest it will pass relatively quickly, meaning no one place should see more than five hours of rain. By Monday, much of the country should see a dry day, they said.

Matt Dobson, senior forecaster at MeteoGroup, said festival goers on the Isle of Wight could expect to see sunshine on Sunday. He said: “There will still be some showers today and overnight but it is not going to be anywhere near as bad as it has been.

“The worst weather today is going to be across Scotland, where there is likely to be further heavy rain or thunder storms. But the good news is the Isle of Wight is likely to have a dry day.”

Doctor Who

The weather has also forced singer, television presenter and actor, John Barrowman, to cancel his Blackpool concert tonight. He was forced to axe his show at the Tower Festival Headland venue on health and safety grounds, after a forecast of further bad weather.

But there was some good news for those who had taken out insurance.

People who have been forced out of their homes should be able to recover the cost of temporary accommodation from their insurers.

Nick Starling, the Association of British Insurers’ director of general insurance, said: “Unwelcome events like this are exactly why people take out insurance, and insurers will very quickly be mobilising claims staff to get claims moving and to help relieve the trauma that those flooded are facing.”