Boxing Day floods on outskirts of town

It’s apparent to many that some parts of the town’s outskirts have been built on a flood plain, meaning that they could flood easily without the modern and comprehensive drainage infrastructure that is implemented in these areas.

There’s nothing to say that these low-lying areas can’t be used for housing and development as flooding often doesn’t occur at all due to the many strict rules construction companies must adhere to nowadays and of course the updated provisions and alterations for the areas which have flooded previously.

One such area that was prone to flooding going back some 90 years was Beaver Road and its neighbouring streets.

The residential area is effectively built adjacent to one of the flood plains and in the absence of such modern provisions and rules to prevent flooding, the area was often notorious for it.

Happily, apart from the occasional flash flood, these intense and widespread problems in the area no longer occur.

Water officials have had to make the necessary updates to the network of drainage systems in these older residential areas, to avoid the hefty insurance claims that residents would make if they (the water company) left things as they were.

This week’s Remember When goes back to 1927 and looks at a trio of images showing the intense flooding in Beaver Road and neighbouring Whitfeld Road on December 26th of that year.

Have you any photographs or slides that you would be willing to loan to me, to enable them to be scanned for possible feature in the Kentish Express? Please don’t delay, get in touch!

Write to me: Steve Salter, Kentish Express Remember When, Unit 4, Park Mall Shopping Centre, Ashford, Kent. TN24 8RY.

E-mail me: rememberwhen_ kmash@hotmail.co.uk

Follow me on Twitter @ SteveKMAshford

Or you can also leave a telephone message for me with brief details by calling 01233 623232.