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Goole and the surrounding area was left counting the cost once again this week as torrential rain battered the region, flooding properties and leaving home-owners facing yet another costly clean-up operation.
As the rain continued to pour, Goole Times reporter Emma Franklin was out and about to capture the scene as wet and weary residents battled with the rising water.
Goole and the surrounding area was yet again hit by floods this week.
Parts of Goole, Howden and Swinefleet all suffered at the hands of the monsoon weather.
Millennium Way
Residents of Millennium Way, a prime target for flooding in recent years, again saw their street slowly fill up with flood water on Monday and eventually seep into some of their houses.
All residents could do was work together in an attempt to clear away some of the flood water themselves. This proved to be an impossible task however, as the rain continued to pour down all day and the water rose higher.
Philip Robinson, a resident of Millennium Way, told the Goole Times: "From 9am the water started to build up. I have lived here for 18 months and this is the third time it has happened.
"We were promised flood doors but they haven't arrived yet. We are still waiting for everything." He added: "We are expected to pay our rent because if we don't we will be breaking the tenancy agreement, what about them not helping us? Surely we have rights as well."
Paul Common of Headrow Housing, which owns some of the homes on Millennium Way and Delamere Walk, said: "Flood gates for the affected houses were supposed to be delivered today (Tuesday).
"This is an historic problem and work was due to start this week. We have worked with Yorkshire Water and we hoped the improvements made to the drainage system had worked. I do think it helped but it wasn't quite enough."
He added: "The problem we have is that we don't want to make the situation worse. We will continue to work with Yorkshire Water, the local authorities and the residents to overcome the problem."
After waiting hours for help, children on Millennium Way began to clear away the water with wheelie-bins in an attempt to help. One Millennium Way resident commented that the children deserved a special mention: "All the kids mucked in, which shows real community spirit. The people who are supposed to be here aren't, and our kids have done it themselves. They did really well."
Swinefleet
Swinefleet was also hit, with the majority of Quayfield Square and some houses on Low Street were affected. Barbara Rankin, whose house is on Low Street, said: "It started filling up on Monday morning. Water was coming through the doors. We requested sandbags but we were told they had all gone and we had to improvise.
"The Environment Agency told me their phone lines were busy and they would give me a call back but they didn't even ask for my phone number."
Paul Brown of Quayfield Square lost all the fish in his pond due to the floods. Water also seeped into his house, where his wife is expecting a baby any time soon.
One angry resident said: "Somebody needs to bring us some sandbags or something. Everyone in Quayfield Square has fended for themselves, apart from the help of the fire brigade."
The East Riding of Yorkshire Council stated that it was continuing to distribute sandbags as necessary to many parts of the area. Residents were being asked to be patient as the demand for sandbags continued to be high and resources are stretched, with the council and emergency services prioritising areas of need.
Residents were also asked not to contact the council or Humberside Fire and Rescue Service for sandbags unless the situation was life-threatening or there was a risk to life or property.
Swinefleet resident Michelle Bedford pointed out that the work of the fire brigade had been fantastic. "The firemen do so much, they deserve more money for what they do. They have come out here today (Tuesday), when the people who should really be here sorting it out don't seem to care."
White City
Householders on White City, off Rawcliffe Road near Goole, yet again experienced floods in their gardens and began to pump the water out themselves. One resident said: "I have lived here for 18 years and this is a recent problem since they altered the height of the road."
Howden
Maureen Greenwood of The Meadows in Howden had her whole garden submerged under water, along with several other houses in the street.
Mark Preston, East Riding Councillor for Howden said: "Whilst I appreciate that Monday's weather was extreme, I do believe that Howden has a serious problem with flooding issues in certain locations.
"In recent years alterations to the traditional drainage system, especially the Howden dyke and the filling in of certain drainage dykes have resulted in a dramatic change to the capacity to handle surface water in certain locations in Howden."
He added: "The continual development of greenfield and backgarden sites is putting too much surface run-off water into the system and it cannot cope."
Mr Preston said he would be calling for a complete survey of the surface-water drainage system in Howden, to identify the problems and to get the appropriate organisations to accept responsibility for finding a solution to resolve the issue. He said: "It is unfair to expect residents to continually have this problem every time we get excessive rainfall."
Jeannette Dixon, security guard at Howden Country Club, described this week's flooding as a "weather warning", which people should take seriously. "This is the middle of summer, what's it going to be like in the winter?" she asked. "Are Goole and Howden going to end up looking like Gowdall in 2000? This is really serious, the weather is warning us to do something."
Airmyn
In Airmyn, a tree near the clock tower fell onto the High Street shortly before 11am on Monday, blocking three quarters of the road. Police diverted traffic until the road was reopened around three hours later. Later the same day, Yorkshire Electricity were called to deal with a tree that had fallen onto power lines on the road between Laxton and Yokefleet.
The First and Last Inn on South Street, which was featured in the Goole Times last week after it was flooded, was flooded again, and owner Brian Knight hired an old-fashioned fire engine from a scrap yard to pump out the water.
The increasingly extreme weather has led to Goole Town Councillor Kester Dean to campaign for all new developments to take into account the effects of the climate change. But he says that so far his concerns have "been swept under the carpet." Cllr Dean also said that plans for further housing between Goole and Hook were set to include further proposals for filling in drains.
He said: "East Riding of Yorkshire Council is responsible for the approval of all drainage schemes for new developments. The council relies on advice from the likes of Yorkshire Water, Goole and Airmyn Drainage Board and the Environment Agency, but ultimately it is the council that has the final say. I have therefore asked East Riding of Yorkshire Council to come up with drainage strategies for new developments in Goole that will protect us from the effects of climate change."
Gilberdyke
Paul Robinson, East Riding of Yorkshire Councillor for Howdenshire, said: "Many parts of Gilberdyke are under anything up to 300mm of surface water. I remember, when growing up in the area, the dykes were regularly cleaned each spring by the local farmers. My grandfather was fond of the saying 'February fill dyke, March muck 'em out.' But where are those dykes now?
"Developers or residents have filled in many, and those that do remain are seldom 'mucked out.' So perhaps we should heed the warnings of the past two days, and have the original dykes reopened and those dykes that still remain 'mucked out'."
A spokesperson for the East Riding Council commented: "The drains filled up because of the sheer volume of water. There was too much water to go through the system and eventually nowhere for it to flow into. Following the flooding on June 15, the council cleared out the gulleys in the worst-affected areas, yet many or all of these still flooded on June 25, demonstrating that the flooding could not be attributed to blockages but simply the amount of water."
He added: "There is no question of any residents being ignored or of the council 'not caring'. The organisations involved in the response to the severe weather have been working extremely hard but have simply had to prioritise the most vulnerable people and those who were facing the worst flooding. We also gave advice to people who might not be treated as a priority but who needed to take steps to protect their property. This included how they could make sandbags.
"The sheer number of people needing help and the condition of the roads meant it was impossible to get access to all properties to drop off sandbags. We will continue to do our best to help those who need it."
Train services are now back to normal in Howden, and a shuttle service is operating between Goole and Hull. However, no trains are running through to Doncaster, where there are still serious problems with flooding.
A number of schools remained closed yesterday including St Joseph's Primary, Gilberdyke Primary, Vermuyden and Riverside schools.
Residents whose refuse collections had been missed earlier this week are asked to leave their bins out if it safe to do so. The council is aiming to catch up with missed collections by the end of Friday.
Police are also asking people who have driven through flood waters to ensure that they have not lost their number plates.
Published on 28th June 2007 in News.
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