Ciara causes chaos
RESIDENTS and businesses have been picking up the pieces this week after flood waters swamped parts of the borough. The region was hit by hurricane force winds and six weeks’ worth of rainfall in 24 hours as Storm Ciara wreaked havoc.
There was major disruption in Church when high winds blew the roof off a building, forcing the closure of the A679 Blackburn Road.
RESIDENTS and businesses have been picking up the pieces this week after flood waters swamped parts of the borough.
The region was hit by hurricane force winds and six weeks’ worth of rainfall in 24 hours as Storm Ciara wreaked havoc.
Thirty-four homes were hit by power cuts in Accrington, with Electricity North West drafting in 200 extra engineers to tackle the demand.
A road closure in Church - caused by a roof being blown off a building in high winds - has caused major disruption and is set to continue while the building is made safe.
County roads chiefs received in the region of 400 calls over the weekend, battling to respond to issues caused by Ciara, which is set to be followed by Storm Dennis from Saturday morning. Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service declared a ‘major incident’.
Highways teams said they were working to keep the borough moving following the floods, as well as gearing up to deal with ice and snow.
Most of these problems related to localised flooding of roads, and downed trees, with teams using sandbags to divert water where necessary and chainsaws to remove trees which were causing obstructions.
Work is ongoing to clear drains blocked by flood debris, repair retaining walls damaged by the flood waters, and assess damage to roads and other infrastructure.
The county council said they will be investigating the causes of flooding as a result of Storm Ciara in order to identify where repairs may still be required, which organisations need to be involved, and in particular where there may be opportunities to bid for funding for schemes to mitigate future flooding.
Gritting has also been taking place this week as temperatures plunged.
County Coun Keith Iddon, cabinet member for highways, said: “Our highways and emergency planning teams have had a very busy weekend as part of the multi-agency emergency response to deal with the impacts of Storm Ciara.
“I’d like to thank them for their hard work and dedication as I understand they put in some very long hours, and did all they could to mitigate the impact of the flooding to our communities.
“The weather has not finished with us yet, and our focus over the coming hours will be on keeping the county moving due to the forecast for ice and snow for many areas.”
People are asked to report any issues with as much detail as possible, particularly where properties have been affected, by calling 0300 123 6780 during normal working hours or by email to highways@ lancashire.gov.uk.
Temperatures were forecast to hover around freezing overnight into Thursday and Friday mornings, before the weekend is predicted to bring further storms.
A Met Office spokesperson said: “Very strong winds in association with Storm Dennis are expected on Saturday and Sunday across many parts of England and Wales. The strongest winds are likely to be on Saturday afternoon and evening, with a lull overnight, before increasing again during Sunday.”