GET OUT NOW!
NO LET-UP IN FLOOD HELL
ONE of Britain’s towns hit hardest by the floods suffered more misery yesterday, when rising waters overwhelmed its temporary defences.
Police ordered people remaining in homes and business in the worst affected areas of historic Ironbridge to get out as the force of the swollen River Severn thrust emergency barriers backwards.
The Environment Agency (EA) said defences were submerged by the sheer volume of water and urgent work was needed to bolster the barrier protecting the Shropshire town.
Agency spokesman Mark SittonKent said: “There was a fear there would be some collapse of the barrier. Over the next 24 to 48 hours as the river level drops, we will move in and do some work to shore up the area and make sure it stays put.”
Dylan Jones of the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust said the water had reached “phenomenal” speeds and there were fears debris would damage the bridge, built in 1781.
Elizabeth Maiden, 88, who has lived all her life in a cottage by the Severn, refused advice to leave.
Vandalism
She said: “It was worse than this in 1947 and 2000. It’s peaked now. I’ve had all sorts of advice from people... do I want to leave, do I want to be evacuated?
“No!Where would I go? I can’t see any point in leaving.
“I can’t leave my property with all the vandalism these days. You never know who’s around.”
Neil Hunt, 58, who owns Truffles Cafe, in front of the flood barrier, said: “I’m not a religious man but I am praying.
“We’ve had the cafe for 15 years and this is the worst it’s ever been.”
Emergency workers tried in vain to pump floodwater back into the Severn, which reached 17ft 8in yesterday... just below the record of 18ft 2in set in November 2000.
At nearby Buildwas, the river reached just over 22ft. The record for that stretch is 23ft.
Twenty miles away, the Severn swamped Worcestershire town Bewdley’s temporary flood defences for the first time in decades and firefighters rushed to evacuate people.
Levels dropped in Shrewsbury, but the respite could be short lived.
The Met Office has warned of further downpours across the UK today, followed by even more rainfall tomorrow, including at the River Severn’s source, the Welsh hills.
Today will see an icy chill sweep the country, bringing widespread snow and ice.
England has already seen more than 200 per cent of its average February rainfall and the EA issued a record 96 flood warnings and 135 alerts yesterday.
Nearly four miles of temporary flood barriers have been put up over the last week, protecting more than 34,000 properties.
The south-west, north-west and southern Wales will see the most rain on Friday and into the weekend.
A yellow warning for snow and ice warning was given from western Scotland to Loughborough, Leics.
Communities in South Wales were told nearly two inches of snow could fall on hills and more than an inch is expected across the Midlands.