Case Study: UK Floods Cockermouth, Cumbria 19th November 2009 LO: To explain the causes and effects of the flood and explain the management strategies that have been used on the river Derwent 19th November 2009

SPECIFICATION TARGET: 2 SPECIFICATION TARGET: 2.2b the effects of river flooding on people and the environment.

Where is Cumbria?

What was Cockermouth like? A small market town With a population of 7,877

Why did it happen?

Why? 3. The rain fell for 34 hours. 2. Warm air rises over the Cumbrian mountains, cools and condenses as heavy rain. 1. A 'conveyor' of warm, very moist sub-tropical air was carried towards Britain 4. Heavy rain enters the river 5. The River floods at the confluences in Cockermouth.

Record rainfall 316mm in 24 hrs! Water station records Britain’s heaviest rainfall since records began in 1914

What else helped to cause the Cumbrian Floods? The ground was already saturated, so the additional rain flowed as surface run-off straight into the river The steep slopes of the Cumbrian Mountains helped the water to run very rapidly into the rivers The rivers Derwent and Cocker were already swollen with previous rainfall Cockermouth is at the confluence of the Derwent and Cocker (i.e. they meet there)

Cumbria Floods 19th Nov 2009 (M.E.D.C. case study) Information GCSE Case study AQA_A Cumbria Floods 19th Nov 2009 (M.E.D.C. case study) Cockermouth, Cumbria http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8376031.stm

Effects http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=iN5faen6s5g http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=AyvNxypJZNo

The effects of the flood ·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 · Many businesses were flooded causing long-term difficulties for the local economy · People were told that they were unlikely to be able to move back into flood-damaged homes for at least a year. 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 · 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. People faced a huge round trip to get from one side of the town to the other, using safe bridges · One man died– PC Bill Barker

Cumbria Floods 19th Nov 2009 (M.E.D.C. case study) Information GCSE Case study Revision AQA_A Cumbria Floods 19th Nov 2009 (M.E.D.C. case study) Table 1: Properties flooded by district and use. CUMBRIA Allerdale Barrow Carlisle Copeland Eden South Lakes Residential 1,794 1,299 0 15 22 74 384 Commercial 445 422 0 0 0 5 18 www.cumbriaobservatory.org.uk/elibrary/Content/Internet/536/671/4674/4026717419.pdf Of the 1,721 properties flooded in the Allerdale borough - 917 were in Cockermouth (pictured). Of these 691 were residential properties. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cumbria/8398538.stm The Cumbrian town of WORKINGTON was divided when floods destroyed its river crossings, killing a police officer, it has been re-united by a temporary footbridge. Workington's Barker Crossing, built by the Army, is named after Pc Bill Barker who died when Northside Bridge was washed away during last month's floods. The 170ft (52m) bridge across the River Derwent took a week to build. Schoolchildren were first to use the new crossing, to avoid a very long bus trip to school. It took Cockermouth residents, on average, six months to move back into their homes and even ONE YEAR LATER about 30 houses remained unready for their owners to return. GCSE questions may be about long term change or triggers that cause an event; plus immediate or long term consequences for groups; plus the possible responses to disaster.

The total cost Total damage cost: £276.5m Business and local economy: £129.2m Property: £98.3m Roads and bridges: £34m Health and welfare: £12.9m

River Derwent (A597 bridge) at Workington Worksheet GCSE Case study Revision AQA_A Skills questions During the previous week- 39mm (1.52in) fell on Monday - that is, during the 24 hours beginning at 9am on Monday - 61mm (2.39in) on Tuesday - 143mm (5.61in) on Wednesday - 247mm (9.71in) on Thursday. The prolonged steady downpour which triggered the flooding began at 2000 on Wednesday and ended, 34 hours later, at 0600 on Friday. In that relatively brief time, it deposited a total of 378mm (14.87in). It takes eight months for that much rain to fall in London. Major rainfall events in the UK, that trigger serious flooding, fall into several different categories, defined by intensity, longevity, & geographical area. Cumbria Floods 19th Nov 2009 (M.E.D.C. case study) TASK – Describe the location of Cockermouth, Cumbria. You may wish to refer to direction & distance. Use BOTH human and physical features. TASK – annotate this picture. You are on a committee of town planners and environment agency - How would you prevent future flood damage. ……………………………. …………………………..…. …………………………….. Cockermouth is close to …………………………….. ……………………..……… Flowing west towards the …………………………….. River Derwent (A597 bridge) at Workington http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/cumbria/hi/people_and_places/nature/newsid_8370000/8370332.stm TASK – Read the paragraph about the rainfall that caused the 2009 floods. Draw a graph of the week’s precipitation. What do the words prolonged, average, evaporation and saturated mean? STOP – Did you read the question? It says stop the damage NOT stop all future flooding! Have you thought about cost V benefits?

Skills questions X X C D B A castle Cumbria Floods 19th Nov 2009 Worksheet 2 GCSE Case study Revision AQA_A Skills questions Cumbria Floods 19th Nov 2009 (M.E.D.C. case study) X TASK – Look at the sources. Why is Nov 2009 So unusual even in rainy Cumbria? Which letter (A,B,C,D) is camera viewpoint? What types of property have been flooded at X B A C D castle www.ceh.ac.uk/news/news_archive/2010_news_item_47a.html#fig3 cumecs Time (Number of 15min intervals) River Derwent hydrograph 19-11-09 Red = flood event Nov’09 Black = mean annual maximum X

Responses to the flood 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 ·      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

Management of future floods at Cockermouth £4.4 million pound management scheme New flood defence walls will halt the spread of the  river Funding from Government and local contributors River dredged more regularly to deepen the channel  New embankments raise the channel height to reduce the likelihood of extra floods New floodgates at the back of houses in Waterloo street http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Swt16ivKnrA&list=TLWmjNqbOAVcBKWgY-TljVG9zIRu-rMqE_

6 mark question For a chosen region, explain how the consequences (impacts) of flooding have been reduced.

STAFF NOTES GCSE Case study Revision AQA_A Slideshow – sch comp won’t set up account to download LINK http://funkygeography.blogspot.com/2009/11/cumbria-floods.html Weather information http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/about-us/who/how/case-studies Flood hyrdographs http://www.ceh.ac.uk/news/news_archive/2010_news_item_47a.html http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/cumbria/hi/people_and_places/nature/newsid_8368000/8368580.stm