Surprise! After Years Of Neglect, What Remains Of England's Flood Barriers Can't Handle This Month's Storms

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Talking by the Trent, the EA spokesperson Alex McDonald said: “We are feeling the effects of climate change in the east Midlands, and as a nation we need to be more resilient to flooding.” This week the Guardian and Greenpeace reported that the proportion of vital flood defences in disrepair had almost trebled in the West Midlands and the east of England since 2018, leaving thousands of homes and businesses more vulnerable to storms.

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Flooding closed many local roads, especially in the west of England, while on the major road network, the A421 in Bedfordshire between the M1 motorway and the A6 was impassable on Friday. National Highways said work was being carried out to clear the flood water. The highest rainfall totals recorded on Thursday were 35.2mm at Otterbourne in Hampshire, with a wide range of 20mm-30mm across much of the southern counties of England.

In a joint statement on Friday, the shadow Cabinet Office minister, Pat McFadden, and the shadow environment secretary, Steve Reed, said ministers had ignored a warning from the National Audit Office in November that said the government was failing to deliver on its commitments to better protect homes against flooding. They wrote: “Rishi Sunak has been asleep at the wheel and he must act now or risk further damage to lives and livelihoods. This is not about extra money. This is about ensuring that the budget already committed to flood defences is used to maximum effect. If that doesn’t happen, homes across the country will remain exposed.”

The EA said “significant river flooding impacts” were expected on Saturday across parts of the Midlands on the River Trent and in Gloucester, with 250 flood warnings in place across much of the Midlands and south of England. It said areas of the south-west on the River Avon would also be affected, adding that continuing impacts were likely across much of England over the next five days because the ground was “completely saturated”. EA data showed almost every river in England to be exceptionally high, with some rivers reaching their highest flow on record, such as the River Itchen in Southampton, which saw a flow double its previous record in December.

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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/jan/05/rishi-sunak-under-fire-after-week-of-devastating-flooding-across-england