well we've been here since lunchtime
it's been raining ever since and it's
getting heavier tonight they've only
just recovered from storm Kira and the
severe flooding they had here last
weekend and now they're wondering what
tonight will bring there's been no
shortage of soldiers coming in flood
wardens trying to shore up defenses and
offer advice to residents some residents
have moved out others are just hoping
that it won't be as bad as last weekend
but the problem here as in so many other
parts of the UK is that the rivers are
already swollen you can see the colder
behind me very fast flowing the ground
is saturated the sponge if you like is
already full of water and there's more
water coming down from the hills into
this valley hence the multiple flood
warnings and there is anger here to the
north of England has certainly had its
fair share of severe flood events in
recent years and there was a very
striking front-page comment in the
Yorkshire Post today which thread we're
drowning Prime Minister it's time to act
and there will be much more of that no
doubt if for a second weekend in a row
the flood defences in these areas just
don't hold out just when they might have
hoped for a weekend off in come more
storm warnings and the army to my thumb
ride in the colder Valley where I ran
200 homes were flooded last weekend
readies itself once again we're all
prepared upstairs there we've got our
own little setup upstairs a little
kitchen up here and we're all just ready
to just batten down the hatches and
carry on really are you feeling about
another weekend of potential flooding
and it's not much more we can lose
really so it'd just be another cleanup
the bad stairs is all clear now so last
weekend a lot of damage yeah we lost
pretty much everything
how bad was it it was to about wish
we're all there on the inside it came
over the third gear eventually where the
floor get worked fine but then it came
over across the road is Skip lice laden
with the debris of storm Kira
while they hastily built the new
defenses for storm days in some areas
they're anticipating as much as a
month's rainfall in one night from
nearby Hebden Bridge to Leatherhead in
Surrey the industry of flood mitigation
measures comes after repeated warnings
we are concerned that storm dennis is
going to be at least as severe as storm
kira we're asking and as consequence
we're deploying all of our mobile and
pumps all of our temporary defenses
across the country throughout the day
driving conditions have been worsening
across many parts of the UK gales have
already affected many coastal areas with
gusts of up to 80 miles an hour expected
in some areas several hundred flights
have been cancelled so to dozens of
train journeys from London to the
northeast of England well back in my
therm roid they look on as they try to
shore up the more permanent flood
defences still in the process of being
built following the 2015 front I think a
lot of people are a bit what's they a
bit angry last week because obviously I
think it's the time that he's taking to
complete the works that they're doing
the rain tonight in many areas is
expected to be heavy and persistent
there may be power cuts too as the
Environment Agency urges people to
monitor local flood warnings well enjoy
now from my thumb roid by Scott patient
he's a member of the cold avail flood
recovery and resilience program board
and a Labour councillor the Prime
Minister said a few months ago and
thanks very much for bearing with us in
this this weather the prime minister
said that the Yorkshire floods before
the Christmas were not a national
emergency is this a national emergency
now in your view I think it's clear that
it is these incidents keep happening
this is our 8th this is our fourth in
eight years I think I think kind of the
book has stopped really what you know
when will when will we get that help
that we need people are quite rightly
angry angry and frustrated and we really
need to see some decisive action right
now
well what action do you want from
central government because the troops
have been sent out what more do you want
the government to do the troops so the
troops are very welcome and they're
doing a great job here you know helping
us but what sorry about that put the
flood defences together and help us with
our road closures and the emergency
services but what we need is real
sustainable funding it was difficult for
us to hear in the day after storm kharid
battered battered us here that hs2 was
being funded that's the kind of
investment that we need to tackle what's
going on with climate change in our
uplands here our geography is very
special here we're a steep-sided
hillsides and valleys we actually need
the capital the capital projects that
you can see around you in terms of the
flood alleviation works are great but
actually what we need is real
sustainable development and real real
financing so that these things stop
happening to our communities well don't
fret says that it is investing record
amounts and if you look at the figures
2.6 billion pounds invested up to 2021
one and a half thousand projects funded
they say to protect three hundred
thousand homes so isn't the government
putting a fair bit of money in I don't
think we're really feeling that
investment at the moment it feels a lot
like the local authorities of
shoulder-in that
and quite frankly we're not in the
position anymore after years of
austerity to to front that kind of money
what we need is investment into natural
flood management into different kinds of
projects apart from civil engineering we
need we need money to tackle the root
cause of this problem to think about the
landowners and their responsibility to
think about the swag no moss and and and
how that's been utilized in terms of
grouse on Seng there's actually a whole
plethora of problems that are there
leading communities like ours up and
down Kola del to being vulnerable to
extreme weather and global warming I
mean you mentioned landowners there I
guess there's things that people can do
on the ground locally like for example
planting more trees in the uplands to
slow the flow of water it's not just
down to central government it ya know
and we do have some excellent community
groups here slow the flow a based in
Cola Dale and they do all that kind of
work we've just been talking about
building leaky downs tree planting
really slow in that catchment of water
coming down here but there is this got
to be a responsibility for these
landowners beyond the amazing community
groups that we do have to stop these
events happening and I think that needs
legislation and that needs real change
of real investment from government and
that's what we were asking for we're
asking for that Tier one status like the
City of London has in its response to
terrorism for us in it to have that same
response for climate change actually and
how it's affecting us here that Tier one
status was on unlock emergency
government funding do you get any sense
that your calls are being heeded I mean
we met with the environments the the
Secretary of State for Environment on
Wednesday but unfortunately she lost a
job the day after so you know we're
gonna need to keep those conversations
going and we have made please the front
cover of the Yorkshire Post has a quite
stark plea though you know we are
drowning here and our communities can't
take this anymore we're kind of rich in
heritage our economies are strong here
but they are on a they are on a
knife-edge at the moment and people are
quite rightly frustrated and wondering
what comes next the council can only do
so much with its partners and we have
led a lot here but we really really do
need that help we're desperate for it
Scot patient I'll let you get in the
draw
thanks very much for braving the wind
and rain for us tonight while we did ask
for a government minister to speak to us
about flood defences and preparedness
but unfortunately no one was available