Rain

It happened earlier.

Driving the 27 miles homes from work across the moors road was not the hardest drive I've ever done (that honour goes to the "2 mile" journey across the Don valley in Sheffield in 2007, which took 5 hours), but it was a bit tricky.

The main road was mostly under water to some extent. Clear enough that the 'flow' was doing about 50mph, but nasty enough that the steering kept snatching. I passed one reservoir that has actually extended itself, right across the main road.

Here in Redcar, which generally never floods due to its local geography. Its almost flat but sloping every so gently towards the sea, there is a flood extending into people's homes. I saw it earlier. Never seen anything like it in Redcar before, but here's the thing. The exact point that's flooded is the location where an 'innovative' storm tank was fitted under the road just last year. The idea was to catch surplus water to act as a buffer while the main outlet was overwhelmed, so as to prevent flooding. Yet there it was tonight, water spewing up out of the ground, creating a lake with a fountaining in the middle and flooded homes around the edge.

I had been wondering when the gardens would next get a proper watering.

 

They haven't a clue when it comes to flood management, have they?! It's not even as if we rarely get rain here...

A few yards in front of ours and our neighbours houses is a little green, with a tree, and a big gully storm drain. The land slopes down in the village to us at our end, and the rain water is always like a river. The road's been 'humped' to make the flow go to this big drain, which then goes into the river (we're at the top of a dale). The thing is the council never seem to check this, my husband often takes a shovel and clears out all the mud etc that gets swept into it, blocking it. If it gets blocked, it flows right around this little green, down our neighbour's drive and floods their cellar/garage. Touch wood we're not as affected. Loooong story short though, they seem to like over-complicating things like that storm water tank, rather than making sure the humble storm drain is up to the job

 

My husband cleans our 4 immediate drains, but can only do so much, and with 2 farms-worth of cr@p getting washed into them, it's not an easy job. I've had to phone the council now to get a couple cleared as they're just too full inside of mud, straw and moo-poo../

 

Was the tide in?

 

Its definitely lack of maintenance that was at fault last last night. I wish those affected would unite together and refuse to pay their council until they'd recovered the cost of damage. That would send out a clear message.

Its not even like we had unprecedented, newsworthy amounts of rain. We didn't. I remember it hammering it down like that on many, many occasions when I was younger, and all that happens is you get a few biggish puddles. One time a fire engine had to come out and pump water out of the beer cellar of one of the pubs down town. That's about it. Yet last night proper damage was being done. As I drove the scary drive home across the moor road, I saw actual bits of road surface washing away before my very eyes. Then when I got home, thinking Redcar is more or less immune to flooding, we ventured to my mam's and saw people's gardens being destroyed, and in some case their homes flooded.

Last time we had proper rain, when half the country sank, we have a great pond at the end of our road. I know for certain it was just the drains at fault because I saw one of those drain unbunging lorries and an hour later the puddle was gone.

Here's some pics of what happened around here.
http://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/teesside-news/hundreds-caught-up-flash-flooding-5850913

There's one pic that made me feel quite sad. If you flick through them, there is one of a young mum, in her wellies in her house, assessing the damage. A small kid's toys are clearly in shot. That made me feel a bit sad because to a kid, all the adult concerns mean little, but toys are sacred.

 

Just happened here, first lightning took out the wifi, then torrential rain with icey lumps, overloaded the gutters in seconds, car alarms going off.

 

Saw this on the BBC News website: Homes flooded in Redcar and cars swept away in Saltburn

Thank goodness you and your family are safe, clue

And there was this happening in Cornwall yesterday! Freak hail storm brings winter scenes to Falmouth

 

Didn't see that on the news earlier. Wow, I didn't realise it was quite that bad. I saw footage of Saltburn, which is just 5 miles down the coast. Looked horrendous. The car that got washed away was in the valley where Skate Beck runs through to the sea. Skate Beck, a bit further upstream, crosses my land. When I say 'land', I haven't been up to have a look yet. My land might now be all over the car park and Saltburn Valley Gardens.

 

Hoping it isn't as bad as you may imagine, clue

 

Just read on Bookface. The local owl sanctuary just a few hundred yards from my house was hit hard, under 4ft of water last night. They saved most of the livestock but lost some of their birds:(

 

Really?

Aww, at least they can claim to have saved "most"; that is comforting despite having losses

 

Yep. This is what they've said.

 

Do you have a link to where a person may send towels etc., to? It is something I am able to do and would like to do.

 

Here's their website:

http://kirkleathamowlcentre.org.uk/

Looks like their postal address is:

Kirkleatham Owl Centre,
Kirkleatham Village
Redcar
TS10 5NW

They have their own Bookface page, its just 'Kirkleatham Owl Centre' if you want to look them up.