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Vast areas of Britain are still under floodwater today while others are battening down the hatches for more rain as the Government and the Environment Agency were criticised for failing to protect people in the worst-hit areas.
Hundreds of people spent last night in emergency shelters and temporary accommodation in Gloucestershire and Worcestershire after their homes were flooded. This morning, Oxfordshire is preparing for more localised flooding by closing roads and issuing residents with sandbags to protect their homes.
In Gloucestershire, the towns of Tewkesbury and Evesham were particularly badly hit. The former was cut off after floodwater swamped the main road into town and 30 people are currently trapped in a hotel in Evesham.
Also, Sutton and East Surrey Water today warned 80,000 households and businesses within its Sutton supply area to boil tap water before drinking it after the firm discovered rain had leaked into a tank of water which had gone out to customers.
Police have advised anyone who ventures through Hereford and Worcestershire today to pack plenty of supplies and warm clothing as more rain is predicted.
Gordon Brown has promised local authorities would be given 100 per cent compensation by central government for the costs of dealing with the rainfall.
But opposition parties have criticised the Government’s cutting of resources for floods defences and one Conservative MP called the response an “outrage” and “lackadaisical”.
David Cameron, today visiting Whitney, the main town in his Oxfordshire constituency, said that serious questions needed to be asked about Britain’s flood defence systems, which he said were sorely lacking at the moment.
He said “We have to ask why the flood defence budget was cut last year.”
Mr Cameron also said he would like to know why flood defence resources have so often been many miles away from where they are needed during recent days. “People want answers,” he added.
The Environment Agency was criticised by the Conservative MP John Redwood, whose Wokingham constituency in Berkshire was badly affected by the downpour. He said that the agency had not put in place sufficient measures to prevent flooding.
In particular, one town in Worcestershire was left without barriers when vehicles became trapped by the floods and were unable to deliver them. “It would have been nice to have tried to put barriers in place,” said Mr Redwood.
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CJ i was about to say the same thing!
sarah, evesham,
So what's new? I can remember the Sea Cadets HQ (and the Northwick Hotel!) in Evesham being flooded often in the fifties &sixties. Rain has to go somewhere which is what created rivers and flood plains in the first place! If you choose to live on the banks of a river expect to get flooded from time to time. You can't beat nature. I do sympathise with those affected, but the over development of flood plains has been just crazy. What is the point of having a planning procedure which allows this to take place? We are going have to re evaluate many things due to our creation of global warming. Especially when the oil and gas starts to run out. But that's another subject!
David Andrews, Wrexham, UK
Bottled water, anyone?
TJ Cassidy, Arlington, Virginia, USA
Are they now moving the county boundaries again? When I lived there, Evesham was in Worcestershire!?
CJ, Halifax, W. Yorks
Its called 'Witney' not Whitney
Adam, Witney, UK
The absence of regular dredging of rivers and canals will always add to the rise in water levels. Whilst the Enviroment Agency fuss around testing the soils for supposed contamination nothing actually gets done. What is required is old fashioned work on river and canal and less chiefs just talking.
C. Darken, Nantwich, UK
Not true Monkey chops. The floods in Sheffield got a huge amount of coverage- rightly so.
Considering the iconic images of red London buses pushing through flood waters in South West London, London got very little coverage in the national press on Friday.
The towns in Gloucestershire are completely under seige with the real prospect of fresh water suppliers being cut- coverage is justifiably big.
Should also point out that at least one person died near Pershore at the same time as much of the coverage was given to Sheffield. This isn't a North South competition- we're all in the same boat- no pun intended !
I'm afraid I missed hearing about Paris Hilton during the Shefiield and Hull floods !
Luis, London,
I agree with Mark Poxon, Glos. But afraid we are flogging a dead horse. The lobbyist for the building trade and developers will never let it happen. It is quite stupid to build on flood plains. But the greed of these people far outweigh the safety factors.
This, and previous governments never listen to the scientists and engineers that know about these problems. It doesn't produce votes. They would rather give to other nations than take care of there own country. 14 million pounds is pathetic. When you give billions of aid to African despots.
ann, london, uk
How interesting that the flooding now affecting southern & central England is headline news. When this happened "up north" the priority news was the release of Paris Hilton from prison! Sorry for everyone affected but it makes my blood boil.
monkeychops, East Yorkshire, UK
Flood prevention and relief are best taken out of the hands of national bodies such as the Environment Agency. As in the US during Hurricane Katrina, such bodies tend to do little to prevent problems and nothing when a disaster strikes. They cannot react quickly to local problems. We need to give local authorities and emergency services the responsibility, the money and the resources to deal with local problems and list the dead hand of the DEA. It is ridiculous that DEFRA's hopeless bungling of payments to farmers should damage our flood precautions.
frank upton, Solihull,
why are the ditches not mainted /dug by the council? why are'nt the rivers dredged ? l live in a small village with a weir and most of the river Avon! And Evesham ,the bits that are not under water is usually found in Worcestershire. Not Gloucestershire
Tim Hartley, fladbury, worcs
This is clearly the worst flooding since 1947. But this has been compounded by the building of homes on the flood plains. We must now implement must more stringent policies to ban building on the flood plain.
Mark Poxon, Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, UK