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Floods devastate UK Lake District
Source: Agencies |
November 21, 2009, Saturday
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Military helicopters winched dozens of people to safety and emergency workers in inflatable boats rescued scores more as floods swamped homes and roads in England's picturesque Lake District yesterday. One police officer was missing after a bridge was swept away.
Soldiers conducted house-to-house searches and the airforce deployed helicopters, dropping down and breaking through rooftops to rescue people trapped by the flooding.
At least 960 homes were flooded by water up to 2.5 meters deep after a day of unprecedented rain, police in the northern region of Cumbria said.
Heavy rain and gales also brought widespread flooding to Ireland, as more than a meter of water shut down the center of the country's second-largest city, Cork, and more than a dozen towns and villages.
Among the hardest hit communities in the Lake District was Cockermouth, a market town 530 kilometers northwest of London. The town, at the junction of the Cocker and Derwent rivers, is known for being the birthplace of poet William Wordsworth.
"It has devastated the town," said Michael Dunn, manager of the Bitter End pub. "There are a lot of properties in Main Street, private shops, that have had their windows smashed in by the force of the water and by debris in the water.
"There were cars floating down the street. It will be a long time before Cockermouth recovers from this."
The rain stopped and floodwaters began to ease yesterday morning, giving rescuers a chance to reach trapped people by boat.
Resident Tony Walker, told BBC radio that the water on his ground floor was chest high.
"I've had better mornings," Walker said. "I've been here all night and I've run out of water now, so I'm thinking of making a break for it, really. The water is still pretty deep, it's going down, but at this rate it's going to be hours before it's clear."
Forecasters said the rainfall was unprecedented. The Environment Agency recorded 314.4 millimeters of rain in 24 hours in one spot -- one of the wettest days recorded in England.
Police urged people not to travel, as many roads were impassible. Two bridges collapsed in the town of Workington, including a main road bridge over the River Derwent.
In Ireland, the army deployed about 100 soldiers and 10 trucks to help evacuate people who had been trapped by waist-deep floodwaters in isolated rural homes.
The floods caused transport chaos along Ireland's western coast, with many major roads blocked and train services canceled.
The River Suck burst its banks in County Leitrim near the Northern Ireland border, flooding the town of Ballinasloe and cutting off major roads to Ireland's northwest. About 40 families had to be evacuated by boat.
More rain was forecast for the weekend.
Soldiers conducted house-to-house searches and the airforce deployed helicopters, dropping down and breaking through rooftops to rescue people trapped by the flooding.
At least 960 homes were flooded by water up to 2.5 meters deep after a day of unprecedented rain, police in the northern region of Cumbria said.
Heavy rain and gales also brought widespread flooding to Ireland, as more than a meter of water shut down the center of the country's second-largest city, Cork, and more than a dozen towns and villages.
Among the hardest hit communities in the Lake District was Cockermouth, a market town 530 kilometers northwest of London. The town, at the junction of the Cocker and Derwent rivers, is known for being the birthplace of poet William Wordsworth.
"It has devastated the town," said Michael Dunn, manager of the Bitter End pub. "There are a lot of properties in Main Street, private shops, that have had their windows smashed in by the force of the water and by debris in the water.
"There were cars floating down the street. It will be a long time before Cockermouth recovers from this."
The rain stopped and floodwaters began to ease yesterday morning, giving rescuers a chance to reach trapped people by boat.
Resident Tony Walker, told BBC radio that the water on his ground floor was chest high.
"I've had better mornings," Walker said. "I've been here all night and I've run out of water now, so I'm thinking of making a break for it, really. The water is still pretty deep, it's going down, but at this rate it's going to be hours before it's clear."
Forecasters said the rainfall was unprecedented. The Environment Agency recorded 314.4 millimeters of rain in 24 hours in one spot -- one of the wettest days recorded in England.
Police urged people not to travel, as many roads were impassible. Two bridges collapsed in the town of Workington, including a main road bridge over the River Derwent.
In Ireland, the army deployed about 100 soldiers and 10 trucks to help evacuate people who had been trapped by waist-deep floodwaters in isolated rural homes.
The floods caused transport chaos along Ireland's western coast, with many major roads blocked and train services canceled.
The River Suck burst its banks in County Leitrim near the Northern Ireland border, flooding the town of Ballinasloe and cutting off major roads to Ireland's northwest. About 40 families had to be evacuated by boat.
More rain was forecast for the weekend.
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