Oh Well!!! Another Unusually Violent Storm Hits The UK, 100s Of Homes Flood; People Should Do Something, Apparently
Forecasters, environment officials and politicians have been strongly criticised over the warnings issued before Storm Bert and the fitness of flood defences to cope with increasingly common extreme weather. A huge clear-up is under way across swathes of Wales and England, with hundreds of properties flooded and a former Welsh mining town hit by a landslip from a coal tip, leaving buildings deep in sludge and mud.
By Monday evening, there will still be more than 100 flood warnings active in Wales and England. A major incident was declared at Billing Aquadrome in Northamptonshire where people were rescued from flooded homes and stranded vehicles. There was also huge disruption on the rail network in parts of southern England and Wales with lines blocked by flood water, fallen trees and debris. Fire crews rescued 57 children from a school bus after it became stuck in flood water in Worcestershire.
The Met Office was criticised for issuing only a yellow warning as Storm Bert swept in across western and southern Britain over the weekend, rather than amber or red.A Met Office spokesperson said a “full assessment” of its warnings would take place but insisted: “Storm Bert was well forecast, 48 hours in advance, with a number of warnings in place ahead of the system reaching the UK.“We work closely with partners to assess the potential risks of extreme weather, and the warnings covering Wales highlighted the potential for homes and businesses to flood with fast-flowing or deep flood water possible, causing a danger to life.”
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John Morgan, the manager of the Rheola pub in Porth, close to Pontypridd, blamed NRW for not doing more. He said: “This is the third time in four years that we have been flooded. Years ago, this river used to be dredged every year. Now it’s not dredged at all, it all builds up under the bridge. What good are warnings at three o’clock in the morning? What needs to be done is the defences, dredge the rivers, build walls.” Dozens of people in Cwmtillery, south Wales, were forced from their homes as mud and water came up to their windows. Blaenau Gwent borough council confirmed the landslip was a “washout of a former coal tip in the area”. One resident, Rob Scholes, said: “My neighbour phoned and said: ‘Don’t open your front door,’ so I didn’t and we just watched it come up. I really don’t think we’re going to get this cleared up by Christmas.”
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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/nov/25/forecasters-and-flood-defences-under-scrutiny-after-uks-storm-bert-ordeal