Emergency Contingency Planning

Flooding

John Backley

2014 Floods

Introduction:

• what happened - our role during the flooding

• what went well - and what we learnt

• looking forward – community resilience

3

Weather impacts

• one of, if not the most, exceptional periods of winter rainfall in at least 248 years

• flow rates on the River Thames remained exceptionally high for longer than in any previous flood episode

- Met Office

4

Our role and response

• gathering information to assess needs – time on the ground, meeting residents, discussing concerns

• co-ordinated approach to deploying resources via OCC Emergency Operations Centre – OCC Highways, OFRS, TVP, OCC, SCS, military

• prioritising assistance to the most vulnerable

5

Sandbag provision

• good use of our contractor Biffa to deliver sandbags

– door to door for the most vulnerable as a priority

– using sandbag dumps to key locations, e.g. B&Q, Abbey House, Wantage, Grove, Steventon…

• some issues with un-managed sandbag dumps

• example of Abingdon TC coming to us to provide a solution to theft of sandbags from the B&Q dump

6

What went well & what we learnt

• importance of community level engagement in effective sandbag distribution

• where communities were organised and gave us reliable information it enabled us to respond more effectively to their needs – own needs assessment, SPOC, relationship

• self-reliant communities lightened our load and freed up resources to protect the most vulnerable

Reports of flooding from town and parish councils•  •blue = complete, yellow in progress • 

•  •Location •Parish/village

•1 •Ladygrove Paddock •Abingdon

•2 •Abingdon Court Care Home •Abingdon

•3 •43 Virginia Way •Abingdon

•4 •Main sewer blocked •Appleton with Eaton

•5 •Baulking Lane, A417 at Challow and Stanford road •Challow

•6 • Elm Cottage •Charney Bassett

•7 •Red House, West Street •Childey

•8 •Childrey Lane •East Challow

•9 •Cornhill lane (Windmill Place) •East Challow

•10 •Memorial Hall •East Hanney

•11 •Lower Mill •East Hanney

•12 •Coxwell Road (1) •Great Coxwell

•13 •Coxwell Road (2) Entrance to village •Great Coxwell

•14 •Grove Road •Harwell

•15 •Kennington road •Kennington

•16 •Mill House area •Letcombe Regis

•17 •Beansheaf Cottage, Mill Street •Marcham

•18 •Pembrook Lane & 104 High Street •Milton

•19 •102 High Street •Milton

•20 •Moor ditch, Pembroke Lane. •Milton

•21 •Causeway to Lower Radley, Panhandle & Spinneys Cottage •Radley

•22 •Bayworth Road •Radley

•23 •Manor Close •Shrivenham

•24 •Manor Road, John Piers Lane, Barleycott Lane and St Lawrence Road •South Hinksey

•25 •Rookery Barn, Vicarage Road Ox13 6SL •Steventon

•26 •12 School Close •Steventon

•27 •Mill Street & Causeway •Steventon

•28 •Hill Farm •Steventon

•29 •Boars Hill towards Bayworth and Sunningwell •Sunningwell

•30 •Churchmere Road •Sutton Courtenay

•31 •Upper Common Lane •Uffington

•32 •Watchfield Village •Watchfield

•33 •Old Mill, Mill Street •Wantage

•34 •A417 •West and East Challow

•35 •Road out of West Hanney (towards Denchworth) •West Hanney

•36 •The Greenway road (junction with The Millham) •West Hendred

•37 •Woolstone Road (where road meets Claypit Lane) •Woolstone

•38 •Grove Mill •Grove

•  •  • 

• 20 • Moor ditch, Pembroke Lane. • Milton

• 21 • Causeway to Lower Radley, Panhandle & Spinneys Cottage • Radley

• 22 • Bayworth Road • Radley

• 23 • Manor Close • Shrivenham

• 24 • Manor Road, John Piers Lane, Barleycott Lane and St Lawrence Road • South Hinksey

• 25 • Rookery Barn, Vicarage Road Ox13 6SL • Steventon

• 26 • 12 School Close • Steventon

• 27 • Mill Street & Causeway • Steventon

• 28 • Hill Farm • Steventon

• 29 • Boars Hill towards Bayworth and Sunningwell • Sunningwell

• 30 • Churchmere Road • Sutton Courtenay

• 31 • Upper Common Lane • Uffington

• 32 • Watchfield Village • Watchfield

• 33 • Old Mill, Mill Street • Wantage

• 34 • A417 • West and East Challow

• 35 • Road out of West Hanney (towards Denchworth) • West Hanney

• 36 • The Greenway road (junction with The Millham) • West Hendred

• 37 • Woolstone Road (where road meets Claypit Lane) • Woolstone

• 38 • Grove Mill • Grove

9

Looking forward – community resilience

• lessons apply to flooding AND snow, power cuts, loss of water supply etc.

• a community emergency plan can be simple:

– a few key contacts– identifying risks in your village/parish– resources available locally e.g. place of

safety– the help you might need and what you

can do for yourselves

• www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/cms/content/community-emergency-plans

10

Supporting community resilience

• send us your plans– helps us to put together future budgets

and plans for community resilience projects

• potential schemes– community managed sandbag stores

works well in West Oxfordshire

– tools for water course maintenance– sale of new eco sacks and door guards– snow clearing equipment– generators for running key facilities– personal resilience

Contacts

• john.backley@southandvale.gov.uk

• andrew.clarke@southandvale.gov.uk

• emergencies@oxfordshire.gov.uk