1. Acknowledgments: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is my geography presentation on the flood of x Boscastle Flood---x
By Paige Collings
Acknowledgments: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2. General Flood Facts
Flooding is a regular happening in the UK during recent years . But flooding is a natural process, it is a river’s way of coping with excessive amounts of water in its drainage basin. Some causes of flooding are –  
Snow melting on higher ground releasing water held in store
Increased run off in tributary valleys increasing the flow of a river
Impermeable rock preventing water from soaking into the ground
The water table may be high because the ground is already saturated from previous periods of heavy rain.
Steep slopes may cause increased surface flow on the sides of the valley
But sometimes these causes can happen together, causing an even worse flood.
A flash flood is a sudden flood event caused by a hydrologic response of the drainage basin. In 2004 boscastle was hit by a trenormous one.

3. Introduction
The August of 2004 was one of the wettest months in the u.k for years, with many areas receiving double the average of rainfall.
Unfortunately, Boscastle was one of the areas that was hit bad by the rain and that amounted in a sudden flash flood at peak times of between 5:00pm and 6:00pm. It lasted for around 5 hours with a peak flow at 140 m3/s (tonnes), the date of 16th august 2004.

4. Previous floods in Boscastle
The last time Boscastle had suffered notable flooding was in 1996 as a result of Hurricane Lili, but earlier floods are recorded in 1847, 1957, 1958 and Fifty-two years earlier, to the day, Lynmouth, a small town some miles further east along the north coast in Devon near Exmoor, suffered extensive damage in a catastrophic flood, in which 34 people lost their lives.

5. Location, Location, Location
Boscastle is the only natural harbour for 20 miles along the North Cornwall Coast. For a hundred years the village was a thriving port, but the coming of the railways, whilst ending the isolation of North Cornwall, soon saw its decline as a trading port. Since then however, Boscastle has developed as a tourist destination with thousands of people visiting the village every Summer.

6. What caused this major disaster
The rainfall on the afternoon of 16 August 2004, was very heavy  mm (8 inches) of rain fell over the high ground just inland from the village. At the peak of the downpour, at about 15:45 GMT, 24 mm of rain (almost one inch) was recorded as falling in just 15 minutes at Lesnewth, 2.5 miles (4 km) up the valley from Boscastle. In Boscastle itself, 89 mm (3.5 inches) of rain was recorded in 60 minutes.
The torrential rain led to a 2 m (7 ft) rise in river levels in one hour. A 3 m (10 ft) wave — believed to have been triggered by water pooling behind debris caught under a bridge, and then being suddenly released as the bridge collapsed — surged down the main road. Water speed was in excess of 4 m/s (10 mph), more than sufficient to cause structural damage. It is estimated that 2 million tonnes (440 million gallons) of water flowed through Boscastle alone that day.

7. Characteristics Height of the flood when the rain had stopped:
Peak times:between 5:00pm and 6:00pm
Peak flow:140 m3/s (tonnes),

8. The aftermath
Approximately 75 cars, six buildings and several boats were washed into the sea; approximately 100 homes and businesses were destroyed; trees were uprooted and debris was scattered over a large area. In an operation lasting from mid-afternoon until 2:30 AM, a fleet of seven helicopters rescued about 150 people clinging to trees and the roofs of buildings and cars. No major injuries or loss of life were reported, however.
Most of the tourist attractions and shops are in the oldest parts of the town, in the areas most affected by the flood at the bottom of the river valleys.

9. Some pictures that show the devestation of the flood to Boscastle
Photos taken beween 6pm- 8pm

10. The truth told by witnesses
Click on the camera 2 upload the film