Wild weather

UK, US batterings continue

DSarah Knapton evastating floods in Britain which forced thousands to flee their houses over Christmas and left 10,000 homes without power, will return as the Government admitted that every defence will need to be reviewed.

Christmas was ruined for thousands as waters rose so fast in some areas that families were not able to grab essentials, such as food and warm clothes, before fleeing to safety.

Even city centres were not safe, as rivers burst their banks in York, Manchester and Leeds leaving buildings under metres of water, and homeowners battling the worse floods than in 2007.

And forecasters warn that more rain is on the way.

Former Labour Environment Secretary and Leeds MP Hilary Benn, said his city had never experienced anything like it while West Yorkshire police declared a “major incident” saying it was the “worst flooding in 70 years”.

Prime Minister David Cameron deployed a further 200 soldiers to Northern England, bringing the total to 500, and said another 1000 would remain on standby as “unprecedented” levels of rain fell on already saturated grounds and more was forecast in the run up to New Year.

Environment Secretary Liz Truss said the potential for further flooding in coming days was “very real”. Speaking after an emergency Cobra meeting, the Prime Minister said the Government would “do whatever is needed” to help communities recover from the deluge but accepted that even recently installed defences had been “overrun”. The Government announced that every household affected will received £500 for temporary accommodation and immediate costs, and a further £5000 to help flood proof their homes.

“At this time of year, we all feel huge sympathy for those who have been flooded and have had to leave their homes,” said Cameron.

“Whenever these things happen, you should look at what you’ve spent, look at what you’ve built, look at what you’re planning to spend, look at what you’re planning to build, and ask whether it’s in the right places, whether it’s enough, whether we’re doing everything we can to try and help.

“The flood barriers have made a difference but it’s clear in some cases they’ve been over-topped, they’ve been overrun, and so of course we should look again at whether there’s more we should do.”

In Lancashire every river reached record heights, and North Yorkshire police said they had run out of ‘ road closed’ signs and asked motorists not to attempt to drive through standing water.

The River Calder burst its banks in the town of Mytholmroyd, Yorkshire. Amongst the worst hit by the latest deluge was the village of Walsden, in the Calder Valley. In nearby Sowerby Bridge, residents said it was the first time that the town centre had flooded since 1968.

Brian Marshall said flood waters in Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire, had been running with such force on Sunday that sandbags had been “ripped up”.

“It was just impossible to do anything,” he added.

The River Ouse in York was expected to peak at more than 4.5m above normal summer levels today, and police advised between 300 and 400 people to evacuate the city.

The Pallister family was advised to leave their home while their children still wearing their pyjamas.

Mother Lisa Pallister, 36, said: “We didn’t think it would reach us because we’re raised off the ground and have three storeys but, by this morning, it was on the steps and it is going to rise by lunchtime. So we had a boat ride out. We’re lucky though, a lot of other residents were flooded last night early on.”

It emerged that the Environment Agency had opened flood barriers in York, causing water to pour into the city. It was feared that rising water could flood electricity stations and cut power to vital pumps, making the situation worse.

Lieutenant Colonel Hamish Cormack, from the Duke of Lancaster Regiment, said levels in York were still rising. He said “we’ve not probably seen the worst of it yet”.

In Leeds, the River Aire bursts its banks after rising to 3m, beating the previous record of 2.4m set in 2007, and leaving homes sitting in 1.5m of water.

Benn said investment in flood defences must be increased. “The need for improved flood defence is increasing really, really fast because the climate is changing.”

Last year York City Council approved plans for £11 million of new flood defences but so far no work has taken place. A £50 million flood defence scheme in Leeds appeared to have done little to protect the city while recent schemes in Manchester did not stop the swollen river from bursting its banks.

Nationwide flood defence spending has fallen by 14 per cent to £695 million and since 2010, local authorities have taken control of their own defences, which stalled some schemes.