Geography - Cumbrian flood of 2009 Case Study

Geography - Cumbrian flood of 2009 Case Study

1. Cause of the Flood

   • Physical Cause
     • The physical causes of the flooding, was a record breaking 400mm of rainfall, with in 24 hours, due to the high amount of precipitation and the saturated ground, the rain water flowed straight into the River Derwent and Cocker, increasing the rivers discharge.
   • Human Cause
     • The human causes of the flooding a number of contributing factors, one of these being urbanization, which increased the amount of impermeable rock surfaces in the area, this contributed to the increase in the rivers discharge. The other contributing factor was the blocked sewers, due to the sewer small capacity and blockages therefore they contributed to the river flooding.
   • Primary Cause
     • The main cause of the river flooding was the record breaking 400mm of rainfall within 24 hours.

2. Impacts

   • Social
     • Over 1300 homes were flooded and contaminated with sewage.
     • A number of people had to be evacuated, including 50 by helicopter, when the flooding cut off Cockermouth town centre.
     • People were told that they were unlikely to be able to move back into flood-damaged homes for at least a year.
     • Four bridges collapsed and 12 were closed because of flood damage. In Workington, all the bridges were destroyed or so badly damaged that they were declared unsafe – cutting the town in two.
     • One man died– PC Bill Barker
   • Enviromental
     • Due to so many properties being flooded there was an inevitable rise in the amount of domestic and commercial waste being sent to landfill.
     • Floodwaters impacted on 40 of the 300 waste treatment works across Cumbria and caused numerous drainage issues
     • A total of 253 footbridges were missing or damaged and 51 paths had surface damage.
     • Major damage to public footpaths and bridleways.
   • Economic
     • Many businesses were flooded causing long-term difficulties for the local economy
     • The cost of putting right the damage was an average of £28,000 per house.
     • Insurance companies estimated that the final cost of the flood could reach £100 million
     • People faced a huge round trip to get from one side of the town to the other, using safe bridges.

3. Responses

   • Short-term
     • Residents re-housed for 7 months
     • Network Rail opened a temporary railway station in Workington.
     • The ‘Visit Cumbria’ website provided lists of recovery services and trades, and people who could provide emergency accommodation.
   • Long-term
     • The government provided £1 million to help with the clean-up and repairs and agreed to pay for road and bridge repairs in Cumbria.
     • The Cumbria Flood Recovery Fund was set up to help victims of the flood. It reached £1 million after just 10 days.