October 2024
Flooding and Drainage update as at 16th October 2024.
At the 7th October Multi Agency online meeting it was confirmed that Network Rail had attempted to clear the last 10 metres of the blockage under the village side of the crossing on the 28th September during an unannounced crossing closure. However, the work was again aborted as they hit clay so the specialist jetting stopped for fear of a drain collapse! We were advised that the remaining Blockage is not under load bearing track.
NR are now awaiting specialist advice and review of options to permanently clear this section fully as still over 80% blocked. In the meantime, pending a proper clearance of the last 10metres their engineers are making provision for an up and over pump solution - pumping water from last new chamber installed in early September on village side up and over crossing by putting pipe under the rail track and back into the culvert already cleared earlier in the year under the other half of the crossing.
LCC Highways apologised and confirmed that they had not yet cleared the gullies and road edges along the main road as they believed it would make little difference till crossing blockage was cleared. They also need permission from NR to work within 200 metres of the rail crossing. A full survey will establish where LCC can affect meaningful clearance. It was shown that gullies on Searson close were cleaned back in June but are scheduled for more work, although these appear not to be directly linked to the road surface drains on the Main Road. AW, who have offered £200k towards a full upgrade are pushing all the other agencies to confirm what funding they can each bring to the table to facilitate a long-term fix including any grant aid monies that can be obtained via the EA.
At the LCC Floods and Water scrutiny committee meeting of the 14th October AW stated that to date this year they have already spent £185k on drainage works in Tallington! However, £67k of this is in charges paid to NR for their engineers and staff to attend site meetings. Needless to say, this was met with horror and disgust by all in attendance. Alicia Kearns MP is taking this up with NR at the highest level as its hardly a sign of goodwill or partnership that NR should seek to profit from the flooding problems of Tallington village exacerbated in no small measure by NR themselves! This meeting was also advised that the draft section 19 report has been delivered by the consultants but is currently out for quality checking by all the agencies and will be published in due course.
Following above normal rainfall on the evening of Thursday 26th September the junction of the Main Road and Bainton Road flooded again. The swift actions of some of the flood response team in deploying sand bags averted the adjacent property being flooded. Earlier in the day the Environment Agency advised they were bringing the large pump back to Spalding and after a request for the pump that evening it was delivered to the bridge by 10.30pm that night. Also as agreed the culvert to the river flap that was leaking again during the fast river flow that night was re sand bagged adding thick polythene sheeting to the rebuild to better seal the culvert. The water had by 11.15pm stopped seeping through the sandbags as the river flow had slowed by then and the rain stopped. So, the flap had clearly closed again. The flap valve as previously reported is to be replaced by the EA with a heavier one and a bung may be inserted into the culvert in future over winter. The pump has been returned to Spalding but can be deployed quickly again if and when needed. LCC highways also responded and despatched a tanker that evening to clear the 8-road gullies at the junction. The 4 gullies on Mill Lane were also cleared of silt that continues to fill the sumps of the gullies from the blocked pipework. The Mill Lane pipework has since been cleared by flowline on 4th October although water can still not fully escape Mill Lane due to blockages on the main road and outside the Old Post office.
Saturday 28th September saw training on the 4” Heron’s trust pump for some of the flood response team. This was a worthwhile exercise as it established where to best place the pump, how to prime it more easily and of course how to start and run it. We now have that info to build on. It’s a much bigger beast than the 2” pump but at max flow it can shift 2,050 litre a minute. 3 more pumps have been purchased by residents.
As presented at the last Parish Council meeting it is strongly recommended that those residents who experienced flooding back in January or those with a near miss consider purchasing “Quick Dam” or “3 mtr long Osmo” or similar flood defence bags online or from local builder’s merchants. These products can be purchased easily and quickly Circa £24-£45. The long sausage Osmo barrier would be ideal for a drive entrance or Garage entrance. Easier to handle and activate and longer lasting and more efficient than sandbags.
SKDC/ LCC have commenced discussions with landowners including the Cement works for the clearance of the road side ditches and field drains. LCC offer of assistance with the clearance of the under-road culverts that were identified at the 24th July onsite meeting as blocked from the Main Road and Casewick Lane through to the cement works over the rail tracks north of the crossing will be implemented soon it is hoped.
The next Tallington online multi-agency meeting (MAG) is scheduled for the 4th November.
Stay Safe. Philip. Tallington Parish Council as at 16th October 2024.