Councillor Neil Clarke talks about Storm Henk floods
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00 So obviously we've seen some terrible pictures from across the county in the last few weeks.
00:04 Do we know how many people have been affected by this?
00:08 We think at the moment there is probably 100 plus properties that have been flooded. So
00:13 they've been evacuated. The County Council's been working with district council colleagues
00:20 and with emergency services. And so there's been a variety of evacuations. Some have been
00:26 evacuated to temporary accommodation. Some have gone to family and friends. And there
00:34 is also a new leisure centre is opened as a rest centre for those who need somewhere
00:42 to go in the short term.
00:46 And do we think we've passed the worst point of the flooding and the water will start receding
00:50 now?
00:51 Yes, I think so. Our information from the Environment Agency is that because there's
00:57 a depth gauge or a height gauge, whatever you want to call it, at Colwick on the river,
01:04 and that has peaked. And we believe we've been told it's dropped maybe two, three, four
01:13 inches. So it's on its way down. How quickly it will recede, I don't know. There are still
01:21 properties under threat because downriver in the Newark area, then there are still a
01:28 lot of the riverside villages, which are under threat and the water is still obviously around.
01:37 And I suspect there may well still be further evacuations that have to take place.
01:45 And then can you talk a little bit about what happened in the areas that have been hit?
01:48 Like, will there be new flood defences to stop this happening in future?
01:53 Well, the flood team here at County Council has been working for several years, offering
02:02 support with flood resilience apparatus. So that's things like floodgates on doors and
02:10 driveways, etc. And that's for residents to actually put in place when there is a risk
02:18 of flooding that they put them there to limit the threat and the danger to their properties.
02:27 We have a constant programme and the flood team are working all the time on potential
02:36 new projects for alleviating flooding, for instance, holding water back on farmland or
02:48 raised areas of land so that the water comes down in a more controlled way rather than
02:55 gushing down in a torrent. And that's ongoing. And I've seen for myself some of those, sort
03:03 of basically like mini dams, very small ones, because we don't want a large one that if
03:09 it happened to be breached, it would create a worse situation. So it's better if there
03:14 are lots of small ones rather than any one big one. And there are villages, in fact,
03:21 so one of my own villages, we just put a bid into the government for having a project there
03:28 for some additional digging, some additional attenuation, controlled way for the water
03:35 flow into the village.
03:36 And obviously we've had a really few difficult months with Storm Babette as well. Do you
03:44 think this year has been an anomaly or with climate change, are we likely to see more
03:48 difficult years like this?
03:50 Well, crikey, I wish I could predict the future weather. One thing's for sure, you're absolutely
03:58 right. It has been very difficult in this last year, especially since Storm Babette,
04:04 because we've had not only that storm, but then these other two big rainfall events where
04:11 the volume of water has just been absolutely enormous and horrendous in a short space of
04:17 time. It's one thing if water was steady, rainfall was steady, then it could be dealt
04:27 with. But to have such a large volume coming down all at once, that is the issue. And the
04:34 problem is the ground is totally saturated. There's nowhere for the water to be soaked
04:39 up. So the only thing the water can do is run off and regrettably start these flooding
04:47 risks. So whether this is going to continue like that or whether we're going to get some
04:54 relief from the weather, that's unfortunately not something that I'm qualified to talk about,
05:01 I'm afraid.
05:02 And is it likely to be a few months for the community to recover from what's happened
05:11 in the last week?
05:12 Yes, I mean, obviously, my heart goes out to people who are flooded. It really is a
05:20 traumatic experience. I certainly don't shy away from that. It must be really awful. And
05:29 we know from past flooding events, it does take many months, A, for the property to dry
05:36 out and B, then the remediation works. Often you might have to have new flooring, you might
05:43 have to have plaster chopped off and re-plastered and then redecoration, etc. So it does take
05:51 a long time because you've got to make sure that the property is dried out. So, you know,
05:59 people whilst the water might disappear, hopefully in the next few days, you know, the ongoing
06:06 consequences will take a lot longer to recover from.
06:10 Great.
06:11 And then finally, if someone does wake up and suddenly finds their house has been flooded,
06:18 who do you get in contact with then? Is it insurance? Or do they need to ring the council
06:22 as well? Or anybody else?
06:24 Well, they probably need to do both. Certainly, they would have to contact their insurance
06:30 companies anyway. But in terms of the immediate threats, then yes, they need to contact our
06:38 emergency number, either through the county council or indeed through their district council
06:45 offices, whichever one is available first, probably.
06:52 Great, I think that's all the questions. Thank you.
06:57 Can I just also just mention, it is always frustrating, and it's a concern that people
07:10 are still entering floodwater and they're driving and ignoring road closed signs and
07:15 flood signs and driving into floodwater. And it is incredibly dangerous, because you don't
07:21 know what the hidden dangers are under that water. And also, it is quite, there's the
07:29 potential for people to be driving through and create a bow wave, which then could well
07:35 flood a property that might well have escaped the threat of flooding. And then suddenly,
07:39 this big bow wave comes through. And the next thing is it's gone into the house. So really
07:46 do make a plea to people to respect the road close and the flood signs and be completely
07:55 aware that floodwater is dangerous. There have been, regrettably, tragedies in other
08:01 parts of the country, you know, where people have got into horrendous difficulties. So
08:08 I don't want that to happen in Nottinghamshire. I want people to stay safe.