Cumbria flooding

Rifte · 10 Dec 2015 at 18:24

For me the issue isnt that someone's house will go down in price, hey this happens. If my house went down in price its not a disaster but I am not planning on selling it any time soon.

But for someone that WANTS or NEEDS to move because their house gets flooded every few years and they cannot afford the premiums. Its a disaster. They may be forced into negative equity (who the hell would want to buy) they cannot pay themselves out of because they have already spent a small fortune fixing up their house after the last flood.

Its a cycle they will find it extremely hard to get out of, and as I mentioned to a chance of circumstance they potentially had no farsight with.

Werewolf · 10 Dec 2015 at 18:58

Dowie, Factories etc closing are unforseen events that aren't usually planned years in advance.

Allowing the building of houses on drainage areas upstream of existing areas that might already get light flooding is something the government has full control over and has what should be very clear potential affects on existing properties.

Unfortunately government for decades has been utterly unable to work out what the effects of their current policies will have in a few years time (see everything from cutting prison places whilst increasing sentencing, to cutting carbon emissions in electrical generation whilst not building enough new facilities, to softer policies such as the Benefits cap where a Judge has ruled that the government is stupid by saying that a carer should not be exempt from it*).

I suspect that if everyone in a potential flood area just abandoned their properties (100 year floods are meant to be very rare) you'd end up with vast swathes of the country depopulated, including much of several of our major cities.

IIRC my parents house is as I say at risk of flooding, but the only time there has ever been a real risk was because the council hadn't cleared the stream near it of things like fallen trees for years.
They dredged it, pulling out loads of junk and fallen trees and the obvious effect was that the water level in the stream even in very bad weather dropped - I remember it used to be 6-12 inches deep almost all the time when I was a kid (I have the memories of overflowing wellies

), these days unless it's been raining it's rarely more than a few inches deep, and the level drops back down fast after rain
A classic example of how the council not doing part of their job increases the risk of flooding.

*This one is a real doozy, to claim carers allowance you have to be caring for someone for 50+ hours a week (from memory), whilst the benefit's cap required you to work for 35 hours a week to be exempt. The government argued that carers were not working thus shouldn't be exempt (despite their own definition and requirements saying differently).

dowie · 10 Dec 2015 at 19:41

I'd be slightly skeptical as to how preventable some of this is - regardless my whole point wasn't that it is the fault of the home owners just that their home, that asset they own - the value of that and cost of insuring it is their responsibility. I'm not sure what people would want the govt to do in terms of 'help' in that regard. assistance with insurance premium or full on compensation for the drop in value of the home? Personally I just don't agree with that in principle.

wnb · 12 Dec 2015 at 15:48

The hard work continues

Couple of people have been arrested for looting houses. A company called Cumbrian properties has doubled the buy to let prices for land lords and for people who have been flooded. Needless to say the company is now muck round these parts.

Rroff · 12 Dec 2015 at 15:54

^^ Council will be along in a minute and start fining people for leaving stuff on the pavement :S

(Feel for people affected by this so near Christmas).

Fuzz · 12 Dec 2015 at 16:10

If you've got facebook, you should see these pics..

HOW MUCH ROCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1206821569332338.1073741855.656172021063965&type=3

Spook187 · 12 Dec 2015 at 16:17

wnb said:
The hard work continues

Couple of people have been arrested for looting houses. A company called Cumbrian properties has doubled the buy to let prices for land lords and for people who have been flooded. Needless to say the company is now muck round these parts.

I drove up Warwick road last night on my way to work, poor sods the amount of peoples stuff ruined was sad to see

Cumbrian properties are a disgrace, i see they tried to back peddle on what they did, hope they go under for trying to milk the situation.

mushtafa · 12 Dec 2015 at 16:26

Seeing pics like that make it seem more 'real' rather than seeing it on the news.

I've never been in a situation like that, and I hope I never will experience it.

Uther · 12 Dec 2015 at 17:04

Must be so depressing to go through all that, with the thought it could happen again at any time!

StriderX · 12 Dec 2015 at 17:49

Uther said:
Must be so depressing to go through all that, with the thought it could happen again at any time!

Back many eons ago, people would generally find somewhere better to live rather than be harassed by the local climate for years.

I realise its rather difficult with how we seemingly force ourselves to live in fiduciary confinement for x amount of years, but that is the risk of a mortgage naturally, id say that renting is actually far more naturally humanistic.

JBuk · 12 Dec 2015 at 18:04

Today I drove through the area that had been flooded last week, house after house with skips packed to the brim and other ruined possessions stacked on the pavement and in gardens, such a mess

JBuk · 12 Dec 2015 at 18:22

Fuzz said:
If you've got facebook, you should see these pics..

HOW MUCH ROCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1206821569332338.1073741855.656172021063965&type=3

The guys doing this work deserve some recognition, they took it upon themselves to go to Glenridding and work none stop to clear the debris to help prevent any more flooding, this was after being told by various authorities they were not to do anything.
It kind of surprised me the royal engineers weren't sent with some heavy duty kit to help out

Mark A · 12 Dec 2015 at 19:59

Now its freezing and snowing

.

Rroff · 12 Dec 2015 at 20:10

StriderX said:
Back many eons ago, people would generally find somewhere better to live rather than be harassed by the local climate for years.

I realise its rather difficult with how we seemingly force ourselves to live in fiduciary confinement for x amount of years, but that is the risk of a mortgage naturally, id say that renting is actually far more naturally humanistic.

Some of my relatives used to own an estate that was flooded in the 2013/14 floods - being part of Somerset that is low lying near the levels back in the day they stayed on top of dredging, provided waterproof storage, etc. etc. the current landlord let it all go - never bothered with dredging, etc., tore down the storage to put in new flats, removed/flattened ground used for flood management to build new properties, etc. come early 2014 disaster struck.

Shoei · 12 Dec 2015 at 20:10

JBuk said:
The guys doing this work deserve some recognition, they took it upon themselves to go to Glenridding and work none stop to clear the debris to help prevent any more flooding, this was after being told by various authorities they were not to do anything.
It kind of surprised me the royal engineers weren't sent with some heavy duty kit to help out

The army engineers are clearing the Thirlmere road at the moment or were earlier today.

Fuzz · 12 Dec 2015 at 22:02

JBuk said:
The guys doing this work deserve some recognition, they took it upon themselves to go to Glenridding and work none stop to clear the debris to help prevent any more flooding, this was after being told by various authorities they were not to do anything.
It kind of surprised me the royal engineers weren't sent with some heavy duty kit to help out

They were..

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10156325677365615&pnref=story

snips86x · 12 Dec 2015 at 22:14

Fuzz said:
If you've got facebook, you should see these pics..

HOW MUCH ROCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1206821569332338.1073741855.656172021063965&type=3

Fuzz said:
They were..

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10156325677365615&pnref=story

That's fantastic to see people helping but awful to know and hear about the lives that have been ruined by this - worse being close to Christmas.

Hats off to them for helping, bravo

JBuk · 12 Dec 2015 at 22:15

Fuzz said:
They were..

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10156325677365615&pnref=story

Not to Glenridding , the place I mentioned

Fuzz · 12 Dec 2015 at 23:10

snips86x said:
That's fantastic to see people helping but awful to know and hear about the lives that have been ruined by this - worse being close to Christmas.

Hats off to them for helping, bravo

Yup, some digger drivers were labelled as heros too due to effectively giving the bird to "health and safety/politically correct" pen pushers...

Lakeland · 13 Dec 2015 at 00:09

Fortunately only my garage war flooded so nothing lost apart from a few offcuts of carpet. My car sucked in loads of water but I managed to fix it the next day so I've got away with it very lightly.

Community spirit is amazing, even folk coming from far and wide. People from many ethnic backgrounds helping each other out which is fantastic to see as Cumbria can be a bit backwards in some areas, especially the older generations.