Lyn Fraley - 8-Feb-2007 - Following recent improvements
to the Flood Watch service offered to people living in the
area where the Rivers Severn and Vyrnwy meet, the Environment
Agency is inviting residents to a meeting at 4.00pm on Friday
9 February 2007 at Kinnerley Parish Hall, Kinnerley, Shropshire,
to discuss any queries or concerns.
The ‘Vyrnwy Catchment’ and ‘River Severn in Shropshire’
Flood Watch Areas have been separated into three areas with
the creation of a dedicated flood watch area for the Severn
Vyrnwy confluence. People living in the confluence area
who are already registered with Flood Warnings Direct to
receive Flood Watch messages will now automatically receive
Flood Watch messages for the new Severn Vyrnwy Confluence
Flood Watch Area. We have updated their records and have
written to them to let them know of the change.
Mark Baynton, from the Area Flood Incident Management Team,
says: "The new Flood Watch Area has enabled us to provide
more specific information to people living where the Rivers
Severn and Vyrnwy meet. If you have any queries or concerns,
please come along to the meeting and we will do our best
to answer them for you.
"If you have registered with Floodline Warnings Direct,
and have chosen to receive Flood Watch messages, you will
automatically be sent the correct Flood Watch messages for
your area. If you haven’t registered yet, I urge you to
do so now by calling Floodline on 0845 988 1188. Being prepared
for flooding can help you minimise the damage and distress
it can cause."
If anyone placed in the new Flood Watch Area wishes to
continue to receive Flood Watch messages for the Vyrnwy
Catchment or River Severn in Shropshire, they can let us
know at the meeting or by contacting Bernice Johnson at
the Shrewsbury office on 08708 506506.
People living upstream of the confluence area will continue
to receive Flood Watch messages for the Vyrnwy Catchment
Flood Watch Area. Those living downstream of the confluence
area will continue to receive Flood Watch messages for the
River Severn in Shropshire Flood Watch Area.
Flood Warning and Severe Flood Warning messages are not
affected by this change as these are already issued for
very localised areas.
Notes to Editor
Flood Warning Codes
Flood Watch - Flooding of low lying land and roads is expected.
Be aware, be prepared, watch out!
Watch water levels
Stay tuned to local radio or TV
Ring Floodline on 0845 988 1188
Make sure you have what you need to put your flood plan
into action
Alert your neighbours, particularly the elderly
Check pets and livestock
Reconsider travel plans
Flood Warning - Flooding of homes and businesses is expected.
Act now!
As with Flood Watch plus
Move pets, vehicles, food, valuables and other items to
safety
Put sandbags or floodboards in place
Prepare to turn off gas and electricity
Be prepared to evacuate your home
Protect yourself, your family and others that need your
help
Severe Flood Warning - Severe flooding is expected. There
is extreme danger to life and property. Act now!
As with Flood Warning plus
Be prepared to lose power supplies - gas, electricity,
water, telephone
Try to keep calm, and to reassure others, especially children
Co-operate with emergency services and local authorities
You may be evacuated
All Clear - Flood Watches or Warnings are no longer in force
for this area.
Flood water levels receding.
Check all is safe to return.
Seek advice.
Environment Agency invites residents and visitors to discuss
Bewdley flood barriers
Lyn Fraley - 8-Feb-2007 - zhe Environment Agency is inviting
people who live, work or shop in Bewdley to come along to
Bewdley Library between 12.00 noon and 2.00pm on Wednesday
14 February 2007 to discuss the Bewdley flood defences and,
in particular, the new defences at Beale’s Corner.
Members of our Upper Severn Area Flood Incident Management
Team will be on hand to talk to anyone who has queries or
concerns about the defences themselves, or the way they
are deployed.
During a flood, it’s part of our job to warn of impending
flooding, to give people advice and information on how to
prepare and, wherever we can, to protect people from the
damage and distress that flooding can cause.
Where we can, we use permanent flood-walls like at the
corner of Dog Lane; it is only in the last few years that
we have been able to deploy the innovative temporary defences
for communities where we cannot build permanent defences.
Rob Scott, from the Flood Incident Management Team, says:
"The health and safety of the people of Bewdley and
visitors to the town during flooding is of paramount importance
to us. We want to work with the community to deliver and
erect flood barriers in good time, while minimising disruption
to life and business in Bewdley.
"Flooding is a natural event, which cannot be prevented,
but we can prepare for it. Bewdley is not suitable for permanent
defences such as flood banks and walls, temporary and demountable
barriers are the only way of protecting Bewdley people from
the damage and distress of flooding.
"For them to succeed, we need the support of the whole
community, including those who live, work or shop in Bewdley
but are not necessarily at risk of flooding themselves.
We are inviting anyone who has an interest in the barriers
to come along to Bewdley Library on 14 February and talk
to us."
Notes to Editor
Some common questions:
Why do you need to close access to the town when you put
defences up?
For public safety. When flood barriers are being erected
the surrounding area is classed as a construction site and
any construction site is a dangerous place. We need to close
roads while we operate vehicles and equipment in a restricted
area.
I work or shop in Bewdley but live elsewhere. Beales Corner
defences made life very difficult - will this happen again?
We are sorry for any inconvenience but our top priority
is to protect people and property from the impacts of flooding.
If we had not put the defences up at Beales Corner the road
would have flooded anyway. We only erect the defences when
absolutely necessary and the support of the wider community
is very important to us.
You promised Beales Corner defences would allow the bridge
to remain open. Why was it closed?
Once again, for safety. The floods last month were the
first time we had used these defences with the added hazard
of high winds. In future, we may still need to close the
bridge for safety but we are actively looking at ways to
re-open it once the defences are up.
Why don’t you erect the barriers when it would cause less
disruption?
In Bewdley, we get about 12-24 hours warning time before
floodwater reaches. the town. It takes several hours to
erect the barriers, so the opportunity to put them up is
quite short. We try to erect the barriers when it will cause
least inconvenience and in daylight, which is safer for
everyone, but sometimes we have little choice
Why don’t you leave the defences in place when you know
another flood is possible?
For security, the barriers must be manned all the time
they are up - which uses resources that may be needed elsewhere.
We also want to minimise inconvenience to the community.
If we are certain another flood is expected, we will leave
them up - as we did at Upton last month.
What are you asking us to do?
We need the people of Bewdley and those visiting the town
to support us and our partners in our efforts to reduce
the misery of flooding.
Be aware of the risk of flooding and road closures and
keep up to date with the latest information via Floodline,
on our website or local radio -especially BBC Hereford and
Worcester.
Be prepared to tolerate some inconvenience if it helps save
people’s lives and homes. We will do whatever we can to
keep the inconvenience to a minimum.
For everyone’s safety, do not remove barriers or signs that
we put up, or try to enter areas that we have closed off.