Hull flood defence wall costing £42m officially opened

A £42m flood defence scheme to better protect more than 110,000 homes and businesses in Hull from flooding has been officially opened.

The barrier runs for more than four miles (7km) from St Andrew's Quay to Victoria Dock Village.

During an official presentation, Floods Minister Rebecca Pow said it would prevent potential future flooding.

The city was hit in 2007 and 2013 with hundreds of homes and businesses affected on both occasions.

Ms Pow said the flood wall, which was funded by a £39m government grant and a £3m contribution from National Highways, would ensure "Hull is resilient to the effects of climate change".

The Environment Agency described it as being "massive in scale" and said it would reduce "flood risk to a 0.5% chance in any given year".

The agency predicted water levels on the Humber could rise by more than 3ft (1m) in the next 100 years.

Emma Howard Boyd, chair of the Environment Agency, said: "This week, the IPCC released its most severe warning yet about the impacts of climate change but our response should not only be about avoiding shocks, threats and risks, it's about creating a fairer, greener, more prosperous future."

She said the four-mile flood wall, sections of which incorporate glass screens to allow views of the estuary, would boost the regional economy.

Work on the project, part of a £300m flood prevention scheme to protect the Hull area, began in 2016.

Hull is one of the lowest-lying cities in the UK. During high spring tides, water levels in the estuary have the potential to rise by up to 10ft (3m) in some parts of the city.

Thousands were evacuated from their homes on 25 June 2007 when drainage systems were overwhelmed by heavy rainfall.

Six years later, on 5 December 2013, a storm surge flooded 264 city homes.

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