York Flood Inquiry verdict not expected until next year

Floods cost City £3.3 million

Floods cost City £3.3 million

It seems that over 12 months will have elapsed between the Boxing Day 2015 flooding crisis in York and the earliest date that changes to flood response practices in the City could be implemented.

The Council now says that its Executive will not consider the report of an independent floods inquiry until 26th January 2017.

The Inquiry was set up last Spring by the Council with a budget of £50,000. It was expected to deliver an early verdict on the performance of the authorities in dealing with the floods which devastated many parts of the City which lay near the Foss.

The performance of the Council itself on the 26th and 27th December was subject to criticism, with communications and relief work largely in the hands of the emergency services and volunteers on those days. There was no useful advice on the Councils web site at that time although information was updated later.

Nearly 12 months after the floods some businesses are only now reopening.

In the interim the Environment Agency have fitted powerful new pumps at the Foss Barrier while work to protect Leeman Road has been finished. Some local watercourses like the Tang Hall Beck have been cleared of debris by volunteers.

But large areas of the City remain vulnerable if a combination of melting snow and falling rain causes the Ouse to break its banks.

The York Disaster Fund – established to deal with emergencies of this nature – was also ineffective in the first week of the crisis and even now has only distributed around half of the £1.3 million raised by donations.

The Independent Inquiry has been taking evidence from the public over the last couple of months.

It’s membership – a Barrister and two water industry professionals – has been criticised for lacking local authority/emergency planning expertise.

So, what they will conclude is anyone’s guess.

However clearly when flooding does occur – as it will – the City needs to be quicker and more professional in its response

We can only hope that there are no major floods in the city before February at the earliest!

Concerned residents can find more information by clicking these links:

Foss barrier control room flooding – Inquiry report published

click to read

click to read

A report on events which led to the raising of the Foss barrier on Boxing Day last year – and the subsequent flooding of hundreds of York properties – has been published.

A copy can be downloaded by clicking here 

It is clear that the potential flooding of the control room was a major factor in the events of that day.

Water entered the supposed watertight building through a service tunnel which had been allowed to subside. The subsidence had caused waterproof seals to fail.

The report concludes with advice on how to prevent a repetition of the problems

“Access openings between the building and the service tunnel should be sealed so that when water enters the service tunnel it cannot rise and flood the building. The drainage could be configured in a way which eliminates the need to pass through the perimeter of the building below flood level ie by having a small pumping system to pump it up and over the flood risk level. After adopting these remedial steps there will always be a residual risk of water entering the building because it is located below extreme river levels. This residual risk can be eliminated by relocating the water sensitive equipment above the flood risk level”.

The report was commissioned by the Environment Agency itself.

It pointedly failed to ask the consultants, who undertook the inquiry, to assess where responsibility for the maintenance failings rested (although it is pretty obvious).

We must now wait for the findings of the City Council appointed review to hold agencies and individuals to account.

 

 

Floods latest – Independent Public Inquiry ordered as York Council issues advice on selection of flood damage repairers

Calls for an independent review into the causes of, and response to, the recent flooding in parts of the City have apparently now led the York Council to agree to mount an Inquiry.

The historical Merchant Adventures Hall was one of the victims of ht flooding.
The historical Merchant Adventures Hall was one of the victims of the flooding.

Press reports suggest that it will take a similar format to that of a Select Committee.

What will be critical will be the terms of reference of the Inquiry and the clarity of any written evidence published before witnesses are called.

In our view the Council should encourage written questions and representations using “open dialogue” socal media channels to allow all those with concerns to contribute.

The move comes at a time when the Environment Agency has confirmed that water entering the control cabin (which was supposedly watertight) on 26th December led to the decision to raise the Foss barrier.  

This threat had not been identified as an issue prior to the recent floods.

It is likely that any Inquiry will want to scrutinise carefully the actions of not only the York Council, but also the Emergency Services, local MPs, the Environment Agency, power and telecoms companies, and the Yorkshire Regional Flood and Coastal Committee (RFCC)

Inquiry members will no doubt also familarise themselves with the many reports that have been published on the flooding threat in the City over the last few years.

These include: 

Skip Fossgate welcome to YorkshireCouncil reminds flood-hit homeowners to employ reputable trades people
 City of York Council is reminding homeowners to make sure they employ reputable trades people to repair and re-decorate their flood-hit homes.

There are some tell-tale signs which can help spot the difference between a ‘cowboy’ trades person and the genuine thing.

Be very careful about taking on someone who:

(more…)