Community spirit praised in Morpeth floods
Jan 8 2009 by Dave Black, The Journal
Click here to read the full report
A MAJOR review of the flooding which devastated a Northumberland town four months ago has highlighted a number of deficiencies in the multi-agency response to the catastrophe.
Consultants brought in to examine the flooding which hit almost 1,000 homes and businesses in Morpeth in September have made 30 recommendations in a bid to improve the way in which the responsible agencies would handle any repeat.
JBA Consulting says the severity of the incident – the worst flooding in the town’s history – meant the resources of all agencies were stretched, resulting in deficiencies in the response.
The company has highlighted the Environment Agency’s failure to provide a severe flood warning to almost 200 homes which had signed up for the service, delays in starting the evacuation process and the fact that Northumbria Police was not in possession of the flood action plan as areas of concern.
However JBA – one of the UK’s leading specialists in flood risk and environmental management – has paid tribute to the "admirable" resilience and spirit in the local community during the difficult relief and recovery period following the flooding.
The company was commissioned by Castle Morpeth Council to carry out an independent, £33,000 review of the flooding incident, its management and the subsequent recovery efforts.
Last night the council released a first draft of JBA’s report, the findings of which will be debated at a public meeting in Morpeth later this month.
The report says, in general, a number of emergency plans produced by Castle Morpeth Council and Northumberland County Council for such a flooding incident are satisfactory and worked well during the event.
However, as part of the post-flooding review, they have been reassessed and a number of improvement points proposed.
JBA says although more than 2,000 properties successfully received a severe flood warning from the Environment Agency, almost 200 homes in Middle Greens, Morpeth did not, despite being registered with the service. It says the Agency has acknowledged this and apologised.
Concerns were also raised by some responding agencies that they did not receive flood warnings issued by the Agency.
The report says the severity of the flooding meant homes had to be evacuated, but delays in starting the evacuation process caused additional difficulties as evacuation routes flooded.
"Northumbria Police report they were not in possession of the Flood Action Plan and so were unaware of evacuation destinations," it adds. Two rest centres set up in Morpeth performed well, although resources were stretched.
The report says communication problems were caused by mobile phones and radios being affected by water, and a high volume of calls overloading the system, but in general communications held up. In addition, some people have raised concerns about the response of insurance companies to the episode.
Its says Castle Morpeth Council’s recovery and restoration plan, and the multi-organisational response, was well structured and organised. "The resourcefulness and passion of the voluntary and public sector continues throughout the recovery phase. This is aiding a speedy transition from recovery to normality.
"In general, the community’s resilience and spirit during this difficult time has been admirable," it adds.
Last night Castle Morpeth Council leader, Peter Jackson, said: "This independent review was commissioned in the spirit of helping all agencies involved in the incident to improve, from preparation to response and recovery.
"Many of the draft recommendations of the report are already being acted upon, and we have no intention of waiting for publication to make those improvements.
"It will be important have a clear plan of action for the county council to take forward from April this year, and we want to be sure that affected residents and businesses are clear about the way forward."
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