A Met Office Yellow Warning of Rain has been issued – which currently brings a very low likelihood of medium impacts for many parts of the East of England this warning is valid for the rest of today.
Despite the likelihood of flooding being low and yellow alerts being common, the Council and flood-response partners are not being complacent and have put our usual preparations in place so that we can respond effectively if necessary.
We and our partners are putting the following arrangements in place:
- Cleansing contractors, Veolia, are on standby.
- Highways contractor, Marlborough, are on standby to close any roads swiftly if necessary. This is to prevent cars driving through water on the highway from exacerbating flooding to any property by creating waves.
- We are ready to provide extra assistance to vulnerable premises, such as care homes.
- We are in contact with Essex Fire and Rescue Service to ensure there is pumping resource available should there be any flooding.
- We are in contact with the Environment Agency and Anglian Water to ensure response arrangements are in place.
Cllr Tony Cox, Executive Councillor for Transport, Waste and Regulatory Services, says: “Residents and businesses in Southend are very aware of the disruption that heavy rain and localised flash flooding can bring. That’s why we always take these warnings seriously, no matter how low and unlikely it may be.
“The Met Office have stated that with today’s rain falling on top of yesterday’s downpours, some transport routes may be affected by localised flooding leading to longer journey times and so we are monitoring the situation closely.
“We hope local residents and businesses will be reassured that we are working closely together and poised to respond if necessary.”
A spokeswoman from Anglian Water said: ““We are preparing for possible heavy showers and thunderstorms across the east of our region.
“To ensure our Southend-on-Sea pumping stations are in full working order Anglian Water teams are on the ground checking pumping station equipment and removing debris from the screens on the Prittle Brook. We have teams on standby in anticipation of lightning strikes and power outages that may affect our pumps.”
Further information about flooding and how you can protect your property can be found at www.southend.go.uk/flooding
Last week the Council announced how it had secured £565,000 from the Department for Transport to put towards updating drainage at three areas of Southend’s highways network that are prone to surface-water flooding.
The three areas identified in the funding bid are:
- City Beach
- Shoebury seafront
- Harp House roundabout which provides access to Southend Airport
This money will be added to the £350,000 the Council has already set aside in its capital funds for the work, bringing the total pot to £915,000.