Tag: flood risks

Work ongoing as new amber weather warning issued

Warning of flood risks

The Scottish Government’s Resilience Room (SGoRR) met again yesterday as agencies continue to deal with the impact of sustained cold and wintry weather across much of northern Scotland and other parts of the country.

The Met Office has issued a number of weather warnings covering much of Scotland, including an Amber warning for snow in parts of central and north-east Scotland – valid from 3 am to 2 pm on Sunday – with a complex mix of snow, heavy rain, strong winds and possibly freezing rain due to mark an end to the cold spell in place since the start of the year.

Several Yellow rain warnings have been issued for western, northern Scotland and southwest Scotland, highlighting some risks of flooding, including in those areas further north where rainfall combines with snow melt. Wind will also become a factor, with a wind Yellow warning in place for much of the country for most of Sunday. SEPA has also issuing regional flood alerts.

The forecast conditions are expected to impact both road and rail networks, with the potential for challenging driving conditions and route closures, as well as delays and service cancellations.

More widely, there is a possibility of power cuts and a potential risk to life and property. People and communities should consider travel plans and take action to minimise these risks. There is a high risk of disruption in particular in snow amber areas and drivers are advised to follow police advice on the conditions.

The Cabinet Secretary for Justice & Home Affairs Angela Constance chaired the latest SGoRR meeting, attended by the First Minister as well as agencies including the Met Office, SEPA, police, local authorities, resilience partnerships, transport and utilities companies.

Ms Constance said: “At today’s SGoRR meeting the Met Office advised partners how we are facing a complicated multi-hazard event, affecting various parts of the country in different ways and at different times over Sunday and into Monday. It involves various combinations of continued snowfall, milder conditions leading to snowmelt, and with heavy rain in some areas leading to a flooding risk from Sunday afternoon.

“Given that complexity I was reassured to hear how partners remain stood up and are working tirelessly across the weekend to continue supporting communities and to respond as the conditions and the nature of the hazards change.

“I am grateful for the work of partners, from frontline responders and agencies to contractors, voluntary groups and individuals who have worked so hard to respond to the impacts of this prolonged period of heavy snowfall and other wintry weather.

“The sustained nature of this weather event, and the different elements of it, are clearly very challenging for communities and responders alike, given the difficulties already caused by the weather since the start of the year.

“As ever, I would encourage people to follow the advice for their local area provided by key agencies, online and on social media, including from the Met Office, SEPA and Police Scotland and to plan ahead for the coming days.”

  • Met Office weather warnings are available on the Met Office website.
  • A three day forecast of flood risk for Scotland is available on the Scottish Environment Protection Agency website.
  • Advice on preparing for severe weather can be found on the Ready Scotland website.
  • Follow Traffic Scotland for the most up-to-date information on the trunk roads throughout the warning periods, via their website, social media channels and radio broadcasts. Updates on ScotRail services and road conditions are available online.
  • To report a power cut or damage to electricity power lines or substations call the SP Networks national Freephone number 105. More information on what to do during a storm can also be found on SP Energy Website.

Environment Agency urges caution following rain over New Year

The Environment Agency has urged people to stay vigilant to the risk of flooding and stay away from swollen rivers

The Environment Agency has urged people to stay vigilant to the risk of flooding and stay away from swollen rivers.

Those travelling following New Year celebrations are urged to stay away from swollen rivers, with significant river flooding impacts possible in parts of North West England today (Wednesday 1 January).

The Environment Agency continues to monitor the forecast and impacts on river levels. Its message to the public remains to check their flood risk, sign up for free flood warnings and keep up to date with the latest situation.

Ben Lukey, Flood Duty Manager at the Environment Agency, said: “Heavy and persistent rain from last night into this morning means river levels will remain high across parts of the North of England until Thursday, with significant inland flooding possible today and minor impacts probable in places on Thursday.

“Environment Agency teams will be out on the ground, operating flood defences, taking action to reduce the impact of flooding, issuing flood warnings and supporting those communities affected.

“We advise anyone travelling or out celebrating the New Year to be especially careful and urge people to stay away from swollen rivers and not to drive through flood water as just 30cm of flowing water is enough to move your car.  

“People should search ‘check my flood risk’, sign up for free flood warnings, and keep up to date with the latest situation at @EnvAgency on X.”

Flash flood plans should touch on surface risks, Localis report warns

Responsibility for tackling the growing prevalence of flash surface flooding should be gripped by central and local government to prevent needless damage to property and human misery, the think-tank Localis has argued.

In a report published today entitled ‘Surface Tensions – working together against flash flooding’ the place experts argued the connection between increased urbanisation and surface water risk demand greater coordination between the public sector, developers and wider society.

The study found the separation of roles and responsibilities for managing and forecasting the impact flood risk are fragmented between a slew of government departments, agencies and local bodies, resulting in confusion when flooding does occur.

Of particular note, the report found that minor developments comprising nine houses or less, infill or permitted development – are aggregating the risk of surface flooding across an area, without a legal requirement to provide sustainable drainage. Official figures for the year to June 2022 show that 35,000 dwellings received planning decisions from local authorities where more than one percent of homes are already at risk of flooding as part of minor developments.

Given that 73% of minor development applications were approved across England in the same period, this could mean as many as 25,550 new homes built in areas that are already at risk of flash flooding, increasing pressure on infrastructure.

Among its key recommendations to reduce risk of surface flooding from climate change, Localis calls for the creation of a strong strategic planning authority with power for force national and local risk management authorities, such as the Environment Agency, Lead Local Flood Authorities (LLFAs) to work closely together and link up policy.

The report also calls for stronger collaboration between developers, landowners, LLFAs and central government agencies to understand and manage flood risk and resilience, and for this to be encouraged and incentivised across all new developments.

Localis Visiting Fellow, Professor Samer Bagaeen, said: “To tackle surface flooding, the next revision of the National Planning Policy Framework must require Local Plans to demonstrate how lead local flood authorities have assessed aggregate risk across the whole area, as well as how flood impacts will avoided, controlled, mitigated, and managed.

“And at the level of place, for infrastructure and procurements concerning flooding, lead local flood authorities should move away from human-engineered barriers and toward natural drainage systems that work to slow the flow of surface water and relieve pressure on sewers.”

Joe Fyans, Localis head of research, said: “As the UK is experiencing extremely wet days – more days of heavy summer rainfall on impermeable ground as well as a significant increase in heavy winter rainfalls – we are seeing an unsurprising increase the incidence of surface water flooding.

“How we go about funding this will be crucial. Central government would be best advised to pproduce a comprehensive flood infrastructure funding programme that is less restrictive and targeted toward places most at risk, while also encouraging ‘bottom-up’ practice by streamlining the funding process for smaller, district or community-based projects.”

Martin Milliner, claims director at LV= General Insurance, said: “As an insurer we see first-hand the very real and devastating impact flooding has on people’s lives. While we know the building of more homes is necessary to combat the housing crisis, the country is becoming less resilient to more extreme weather, and we must look at the future impacts this will have on our homes.

“The report highlights significant issues that continue to put an ever-increasing number of communities at risk, and it’s crucial that property developers, insurers and local authorities work together to tackle this important issue.”

“With the creation of our Flood-Proof Home of the Future we want to draw attention to the impact flooding could have on this country in 50 years, by showcasing the extreme features homes of the future may need to have to guard against flood risk.

“With the installation of such sophisticated flood proofing practically and financially out of the question for most homeowners, it’s more important than ever we work to combat the problem before such extreme measures are necessary.”

051_SurfaceTensions_AWKDownload