Scandal of homes left to the floods
FISHLAKE village, near Doncaster, had not flooded for almost 100 years. In 2007, when the River Don overflowed both banks, some fields between Stainforth and Fishlake flooded, but no water reached the village. A few houses in Stainforth had some limited flooding due to blocked and poorly maintained drainage. The politicians keep spouting about the millions of pounds given for flood defences since 2007, but there have been no improvements on the west side of the River Don at Fishlake, which is why the village flooded in November. The east side had a wall built more than 3ft above the height of the opposite bank in 2009/2010, hence in the 2019 floods, Fishlake got the lot. The Environment Agency keeps saying that dredging does no good, but when the River Don used to be dredged from one end to the other, the banks were never topped. This dredging was stopped in the 1970s to save money. The European Water Framework Directive, introduced in 2000, prevents dredging from being carried out. Now we are out of the EU, can we have some action to protect our properties and lives? I have been calling for efforts to prevent flooding since 2009 and have sent numerous letters to politicians, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Environment Agency, the metropolitan borough council and the mayor of Doncaster. I have received replies on House of Commons headed paper acknowledging receipt of my letters, but nothing has been done because politicians don’t listen to the people. But after the flooding experienced throughout the country this winter, the public will not be fobbed off with lame excuses and false promises.
DAVE CROUCHER, Doncaster, S. Yorks.