And here we have even more expected. As they said in MASH "Incoming!". Next storm

It is getting pretty bad though, the worst in over 30 years around here, and we are better off than Somerset. Staines under water is just unprecedented in my memory, and I've lived in North Surrey/Sarf Lunnon for over 65 years.

David Cameron: "We are in the middle of very difficult times"

I suppose a fair comment, he isn't King Canute.

He said major supermarkets were providing supplies such as waders, food parcels, batteries and torches.

There would also be a push to help farmers, with Morrisons using its lorries to collect distressed livestock and helping to move silage and hay.

Tesco is sending bales of hay to farms in south-west England to help feed displaced animals.

Hardware stores are stocking flood relief centres with kettles, toasters and fridges, as well as providing sand and sandbags.

And the accommodation website Airbnb will waive its fees on rooms offered to flood victims,

It is the Dunkirk and Blitz spirit all over again from WWII. It what we Brits do.

Alex Tribick from the Spelthorne Business Forum in Surrey said the local currency had "changed from the pound to the sandbag".

Private walker from Dads Army "Psst, wanna buy a sand bag, 10 bob".

Thames flooding in Surrey

"There's tremendous local support. The local borough sent people round on Monday to ask if I needed anything. I said, 'I'm fine thanks very much.'

"I'm lacking the exercise in my poor old bones but other than that I'm content."

Now that is very British!

---

Life on earth is the global equivalent of not storing things in the fridge.

Yep, it was also reported on the BBC news, that in places, water is now rising up from under the earth to mix with the ground water already there. Everything is just totally saturated. Look at this report.

Thames flooding in Surrey

Hitler couldn't beat us in WWII, neither will these damn floods either. Makes you proud to be British!



Mind you if the damn rain would stop it might help a bit!

"S'cuse me, am I anywhere near to No.2 Riverside Way"?

---

The Kite Fliers

--------------------
Kite fliers: An imaginary club of solo members, those who don't yet
belong to a formal team so "fly their own kites" - as the saying goes.

I might yet need it Nick! The recreation ground at the back of me has groundwater on it which is threatening to overflow into my back garden. And I'm way above river level. Keep the offer open as long as your middle name isn't Liza ....

...Nay, but as you can see, Henry still has a problem!!

---

The Kite Fliers

--------------------
Kite fliers: An imaginary club of solo members, those who don't yet
belong to a formal team so "fly their own kites" - as the saying goes.

Yep, it was also reported on the BBC news, that in places, water is now rising up from under the earth to mix with the ground water already there. Everything is just totally saturated. Look at this report.

Thames flooding in Surrey

Hitler couldn't beat us in WWII, neither will these damn floods either. Makes you proud to be British!



Mind you if the damn rain would stop it might help a bit!

Saw an interesting bit of video yesterday - someone lifting the cap on a bore hole. The pipe stood some way above ground level, and water was coming out of the hole at quite a rate...

---

Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

I might yet need it Nick! The recreation ground at the back of me has groundwater on it which is threatening to overflow into my back garden. And I'm way above river level. Keep the offer open as long as your middle name isn't Liza ....

I've got a spare bucket if that's any good to you Chris??

---

The Kite Fliers

--------------------
Kite fliers: An imaginary club of solo members, those who don't yet
belong to a formal team so "fly their own kites" - as the saying goes.

Hello Mr, Cynical :-)

There is nothing that can be DONE about it, you can only ALLEVIATE it ....

Come up with a way to control the weather and you'll get a Nobel Prize :-)

Last person who could do that got nailed to a tree 2000 years ago!

---

Life on earth is the global equivalent of not storing things in the fridge.

Hello Mr, Cynical :-)

There is nothing that can be DONE about it, you can only ALLEVIATE it ....

Come up with a way to control the weather and you'll get a Nobel Prize :-)

This isn't rural Somerset peeps, this is in Greater London, just 12 miles from Westminster!! I've lived here also since 1983, and it never has been as bad as this, and looks to get worse as well. It is no wonder the Government flood relief effort was slow to start, I can hardly believe it myself now it's on my own doorstep .....

Just 12 miles away from something getting done about it then!
Call me cynical.

---

Life on earth is the global equivalent of not storing things in the fridge.

Well folks it's getting closer to home. The Thames within 10 miles of me is at it highest levels for over 31 years, and major flooding is happening along it with homes being evacuated in Shepperton and Chertsey just 10 miles away, and all towpaths under water. Some underground car parks in my town are at serious risk of being flooded very shortly and are being cleared of vehicles. The army is on immediate standby, and the local MP and the Council, have already identified and prepared potential evacuation centres for refugees. My weather station recored 1" rain in the last 24 hours.

This isn't rural Somerset peeps, this is in Greater London, just 12 miles from Westminster!! I've lived here also since 1983, and it never has been as bad as this, and looks to get worse as well. It is no wonder the Government flood relief effort was slow to start, I can hardly believe it myself now it's on my own doorstep .....

If you can work out a way to send it to central Aussieland I'm sure that there are some people out there who would love it. ;-)

Cheers.

Well folks it's getting closer to home. The Thames within 10 miles of me is at it highest levels for over 31 years, and major flooding is happening along it with homes being evacuated in Shepperton and Chertsey just 10 miles away, and all towpaths under water. Some underground car parks in my town are at serious risk of being flooded very shortly and are being cleared of vehicles. The army is on immediate standby, and the local MP and the Council, have already identified and prepared potential evacuation centres for refugees. My weather station recored 1" rain in the last 24 hours.

This isn't rural Somerset peeps, this is in Greater London, just 12 miles from Westminster!! I've lived here also since 1983, and it never has been as bad as this, and looks to get worse as well. It is no wonder the Government flood relief effort was slow to start, I can hardly believe it myself now it's on my own doorstep .....

Here in the states They are now addressing building in flood plains by chargeing the hell out of you for flood insurance. And also revising the flood plain maps and chargeing more flood insurance. I have a freind at work he bought a house in a 100 year flood plain. His insurance was $350.00 US a year. IT is now $5,000.00 US a year. He cant afford to live there. But who will buy his house now? His isnt the only story around either. Many housing sales were stopped because of if.

So in effect the Government has stopped peolpe building in flood plains.
It would be cheaper to move the house than pay $5,000 a year for insurance.

---

[/quote]

Old James

Like many things its down to the individual nations. The Dutch have some very pragmatic rules, like if you build on a flood plain you must be elevated above the height of the local flood defenses either on a platform or stilts. And of course the Dutch use their flood plains for what they are intended....

Building on stilts when on floodplains has been discussed on various web sites
and in time may be come part of the building Regs & Act in time. But here lies
the big problem it will become part of the Act hence will not be a Law. A Law
you can't break but an Act can be over-ridden by the Planning inspectorate.
Hence why big business is able to over-ride local planning procedures in the
face of objections by Councils and their local tax payers. Got a lot of big
changes to make in the UK....big changes.

---

The Kite Fliers

--------------------
Kite fliers: An imaginary club of solo members, those who don't yet
belong to a formal team so "fly their own kites" - as the saying goes.

Like many things its down to the individual nations. The Dutch have some very pragmatic rules, like if you build on a flood plain you must be elevated above the height of the local flood defenses either on a platform or stilts. And of course the Dutch use their flood plains for what they are intended....

---

Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

Been trying to find info on European floodplain policy abroad. Can't find much
other than that with reference to agricultural use. I wonder if this means they
don't permit the building of domestic dwellings on floodplains abroad???

---

The Kite Fliers

--------------------
Kite fliers: An imaginary club of solo members, those who don't yet
belong to a formal team so "fly their own kites" - as the saying goes.

They had a similar closure in France at around the same time i believe. The difference is they didn't subsequently build housing estates and such on the land. So a few decades later when they wanted the railways again, they just laid new track et voila. But i suppose that's the joy of having a larger country in the first place.

---

Life on earth is the global equivalent of not storing things in the fridge.

Beeching simply did what he was asked to do i.e. make the railways profitable. To achieve that he closed thousands of miles of (AT THAT TIME) uneconomic branch lines. 50 years later we can see that the political decisions taken at that time were just short sighted, but that is easy to do with hindsight isn't it? Don't blame Beeching, blame the politicians at the time. They did what they thought was right, but they got it wrong.

The LSWR existed from 1838 to 1922 and rebuilt London Waterloo Station as one of the great stations of the world.

The simple fact remains that it was a damn silly place to build a railway!!! You only have to lose Dawlish or a station either side of it, and you cut off the whole of Cornwall. Any system fit for purpose needs to have built in redundancy. Brunel might have been a famous man, but even he didn't get it right all the time. They've got away with it for very many years, despite the known history, now they will HAVE to do something about it. And quite right too. By all means repair the scenic route via Dawlish, but it cannot be relied upon any more as a main arterial link to Cornwall. Bugger the damn tourists and anoraks, give us a railway fit for the 21C.

Latest proposals

Dawlish history

Nostalgia

Isn't the problem that Beeching closed the wrong rail lines to cope with present situation. Concentrating on keeping open the lines that generated the most income.

The old L&SW rail was the line that took the center route towards Lands End. Which basically forced Brunel to take the coastal route for Gods Wonderful Railway (GWR).