'Residents have gone through hell after Storm Henk'

Leaders in a Nottinghamshire district where residents have "gone through hell" due to flooding are calling for action to prevent future devastation.

Homes along the Trent Valley, Newark, were evacuated as a major incident was declared during Storm Henk on 4 January.

At a Newark and Sherwood District Council meeting on Wednesday, councillors said the district could not return to “business as usual”, as once-in-a-hundred-years weather events were repeatedly happening.

Labour councillor Paul Taylor, who is also the Portfolio Holder for Public Protection and Community Relations, said: “We need to make sure lessons are learned."

During the full council meeting, Mr Taylor proposed a motion calling for all responsible bodies to come together and produce a joined-up plan to address the threat of extreme weather events.

This would include district and county councils, central government, the Environment Agency, Severn Trent Water and other drainage authorities, reports the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Mr Taylor said: “Many residents have gone through hell. We’ve just been through another weekend where many feared they would be flooded.

“We all know it will happen again but we don’t know when.

“Let’s not pretend that because the weather has gone, people’s pain and suffering has gone. We’re still in the recovery stage.

“We need to make sure lessons are learned.

“Unfortunately, the Environment Agency’s flood maps are out of date in many places, so we need to push for our planning department to be allowed to use local knowledge.”

He said the council had to borrow boats from other authorities as waters rose, while in some communities flood wardens who attempted to close roads were abused by drivers.

Conservative councillor Roger Jackson said: “My district is in a high-risk flood area. Some homes have been flooded ten times in 25 years.

“We’re having a lot more rain and we need to plan properly for it. A lot of infrastructure which has been neglected for many years needs to be brought back into use.

“Nottinghamshire County Council needs to be given better resources to maintain drains and gulleys.

“Too many landowners are also neglecting their responsibilities to maintain the dykes and ditches.”

Flood defences which are nearly completed in Lowdham were credited with protecting many homes there in future.

Independents for Newark and District councillor Emma Oldham said: “The flooding has really taken a toll on people’s mental health. They are living in fear whenever the rains come.

“Flood events are rare but are becoming more frequent. We must not revert back to business as usual.”

She said natural solutions, like restoring wetlands and creating reed beds, would minimise the impact while creating green jobs.

Councillors voted unanimously to back the motion, with independent councillor Rowan Cozens saying: “There are no party politics here, this is an existential crisis.”

Council officers will be meeting partners in other agencies next week to discuss the lessons learnt from Storm Henk.

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