13/01/2016 Inside Out North East and Cumbria

Just over a month ago Storm Desmond wrought havoc across the North.

The BBC's Danny Savage was in Cumbria, as the flood water

surged into thousands of homes and businesses.

Many of them were uninsured - unable to afford the premiums

demanded in the wake of previous floods,

and as Danny's discovered, a scheme that's promising to put

MUSIC: Dark Water by D M Ecks

AUDIO CLIPS FROM RADIO CUMBRIA: It is absolutely

Watching the inevitable happen, basically.

It's a mess, it's the trauma, it's the upset, it's the fact

that it goes on for months and, you know, it seems

And you sit there and think, I can't go through this agahn.

It's just the most awful emotional strain.

MUSIC: Dark Water by D M Ecks

Well, this is Warwick Road in Carlisle.

This was the worst affected part of the city back

The bridge is cordoned off tonight because it has structural problems

and they're worried it could give way.

But the local residents are out and they are really worried

there will be a repeat of what happened here ten years ago,

and that all these houses that have been renovated and repaired

I'm kind of thinking the worst, really.

Across the North West, vital infrastructure is hamlered.

Well, this is a car park right in the centre of Carlisle,

completely covered in water, and it has risen

really quickly over the last few hours,

but the real thing is over this fence here -

take a look at this.

You can just about see the overhead gantries,

and instead of railway tracks, you can't see anything -

Across town, water has breached the city's flood defences.

I just need to talk to this old couple.

We have a drain in our back garden and it's coming

up through the drain there rather quickly.

I don't want you to stand out in the cold...

Some people are grabbing what they can, and leaving.

My wife is out and my son is on his way.

We are just cleaning my stuff out of the house -

not much we can do really, just get out.

Others plan to sit it out, like Vanessa -

It's just been a bit hectic, and my mam does not want to move

at all - she did not even want me moving her stuff up the stahrs.

2005 - they said it was a hundred-year-flood,

and it has happened again, and that's with the flood defences.

30 miles away, Sue Cashmore has retreated upstairs.

Well, here we are - a repeat of 2009.

Just five foot of water in the house at the moment, sat up

here in the dark, candle light, with my little dog.

I'm just going to make a cup of tea because

And unfortunately this time no insurance, so I don't know what I'm

Couches have gone, kitchen has gone, all the utilities have gone.

Just hope the boiler doesn't get it, because that's very expensive.

I'm going to have to do quite a bit of overtime next year I think -

all that work for the flood defences and they didn't

Across the county, the flooding is unstoppable.

So that's your back garden, completely

In the house further down, it is probably about a metre.

The situation has got so series now on the Warwick

Road in Carlisle that they have brought in these rescue boats now.

They will be taken off the trailer, down the road, to help people get

They are going to work through the night.

Daylight - a flood of biblical proportions.

She is 94, nearly 95, and this is the

second time this has happened, so... (EMOTIONAL)

Vanessa's mum, Florence, has finally been persuaded

She looked that tiny when she was originally sitting

with this little fridge, you know, and I said,

that's the fridge boat, Mam, so I think

they rescued quite a few in that, in the flood.

they rescued quite a few after that, in the fridge boat.

This is the A591, the main link between Ambleside and Keswick.

The bridge that gave Pooley Bridge its name is gone.

By the end of the weekend, questions are mounting.

We were told it was going to be after these defences,

it was a once-in-a-250-year event, and here

we are ten years later, ?38 million and ten years l`ter

I feel that we have been fed a bit of

And in Cockermouth, Sue is still trapped

Hoping tomorrow the water will get low enough

so I can get out.

Pretty devastating everywhere, from what I can gather.

Had no contact with my parents so I don't know

I phoned it at six o'clock this morning so I have had no contact

I have been talking to my neighbours through the window

I was going to say, there were bottles of champagne

This is my Christmas stocking, for Christmas Day!

For days, there will be nothing to do

ARCHIVE FOOTAGE: Villages have been marooned.

And landslides have added to the chaos created by floods,

which have cut main roads and railways.

Flooding is nothing new in Cumbria, but one expert thinks

If you look back to the 1960s, we have witnessed

about a 30% increase in winter rainfall in my lifetime.

Now, looking ahead, using the climate

models, by the 2050s I can dxpect another 15% increase in the future

Adding that together, we can expect maybe a 45%,

perhaps 50%, increase in winter rainfall in my lifetime.

So is it possible to protect the county from

?38 million was spent buildhng flood defences in Carlisle after the 2005

?6 million was spent in Keswick and ?4.4 million in Cockermouth.

They all failed to stop flooding, and 51 flood defence

schemes in Cumbria and the North West await funding.

In Kendal, there's pressure to reinstate some of those

There's one for the River Kent just down the road from here,

which is on the shelf, which they could just take off

and fund - they could do that almost right away,

but there will be other schemes that could be drawn up to prevent

this kind of thing happening agahn.

This is obviously a level of something we are going to h`ve

to expect again in the future - in which case it saves money

and a lot of grief if we can prevent it with proper

But as the mopping up continues down the road,

the arguments may seem a bit academic.

Wildman Street is noted for it, and now it has happened it can

Something is going to have to happen, because every tile it

rains we are all going to be mad panicking.

Sorry... (CRYING)

And in Cockermouth, Sue's fhnally been able to leave her bedroom,

I've spent the last ten days cleaning two houses,

because my parents have been flooded as well.

I don't have insurance, so it is about salvaging thhs house

the best I can and today is the first day I've had anytime

And I feel angry, I do feel angry - I have worked hard all my life

- I have raised two kids on my own and now I have to rely

on the generosity of others because I could not get instrance

and I've lost quite a lot really.

And sadly for Sue an insurance scheme that could have helped

This flood has been out there for two years now and it has

not been signed off by Prudential yet.

Until I see it on a table and when they say

it is a definite and signed off I am not convinced.

For many, insurance has been unaffordable because it was just too

expensive, so despite the ndw flood defences in Cockermouth,

Keswick and Carlisle Insurance for some is impossible to get ?

After the floods that floored parts of the south in 2014 the industry

came up with a plan to make sure people with homes at risk

of flooding could get the cover they needed and it's called Flood

Well, I think Flood Re is a very positive thing.

Mary Dhonau's advised the insurance industry on the creation of Flood Re

- it'll start in April and should guarantee every home owner

I have talked to people whose excess is going to be ?10,000

It is excellent news for thdm and the light at the end

of the tunnel really for people who have been flooded

because I have talked to so many people who live

in fear of flooding again not knowing how they are going to afford

This way people will be abld to afford flood insurance,

it will be guaranteed for high risk,

but only for houses that have been built before 2009.

But it will come too late for people flood of this winter.

This has been talked about for three years.

In effect and look at what has happened in the meantime. -, but it

happened in the meantime. -- but it still has not come into effdct.

Why has Flood Re taken so long?

Flood Re is a complex from the systems built we rdquire

and insurers require from getting legislation through Governmdnt

to getting regulatory approval from the regulators.

This is something that is complex and

I have been talking to a lady in Cockermouth who had at premium

She did not take it out, could not afford it,

and now her home is ruined and she has no

What can you say to people like that about their futurd?

Quite simply, it is people like that that reason why we are building

Flood Re - it is exactly for people who struggle to afford home

insurance, because they live in areas at the risk of flooding.

But, as we've heard, the skin doesn't cover housds

built after 2009, and earlidr this month MPs raised concerns it doesn't

The Prime Minister has promised to investigate...

We are looking very carefully at this scheme,

particularly on the issue of the businesses.

What we've heard so far is a number of anecdotal stories about small

businesses saying it's going to be very difficult to get insurance.

Meanwhile, the insurance colpanies are telling us they won't turn down

any small businesses, so we need to get to the bottom

Absolutely key, before we gdt the final introduction of Flood Re

So the new scheme requires ` home to be in a recognised flood area

on a map, like this one drawn up by the Environment Agency.

It shows which areas are most at risk of flooding and which have

had protection schemes added to reduce the risk.

The agency maps are used by a commercial organisation,

which passes on information to the people running Flood Re,

so it's vital the information is up to date and accurate.

But, as I have discovered, that's not always the case.

Hi, Lynne - I'm Danny from the BBC...

Lynne runs a B in Keswick and has been flooded three times

She had insurance, but stills faces a huge bill.

Our excess was ?10,000, or 25% of the claim -

So, as soon as I got flooded, I lost ?10,000 full stop.

If you look at the maps which are actually online...

And to rub salt into the wound, Lynne was paying a higher premium

than she needed to because the Environment Agency map

on which her insurance was based on was wrong.

They had our flood risk as being higher than it

actually should have been, and that applies to probably

The consequence of that is a lot of people could not afford hnsurance

for flooding, and did not take out flood insurance cover,

and now they have lost everxthing, and they are devastated.

So whose responsibility is ht to make sure the information

Well, in the intial phase it's the EA flood maps which have got

to be correct and the info has to be passed on and the people sitting

at the desks that are doing the mapping have got to unddrstand

the work they are doing is not a paper exercise -

it actually has an effect on people's lives

After talking to many people in Cumbria, I went to talk

to the Environment Agency to get some answers.

One woman in Keswick has said to us, 'the people sitting at the desks

that are doing the mapping have got to understand

the work they are doing is not a paper exercise it actually has

an effect on peoples lives and it can be catastrophic.'

I would absolutely agree and this is not just a paper

exercise - this whole series of incidents for me is about people,

we talk a lot about record rainfall and flood defences and propdrties

so with 6500 properties flooded that is 25,000 people.

My people and those teams on the ground

are part of those communitids and I feel really strongly our main

On the issue of insurance Flood Re is due to come in this year and it

will be using information from your maps.

Isn't it vital then that your maps are spot on for future reference?

It is a complex issue and we will continue to evolve

and finesse this, and whether we get to a perfect point I doubt,

because I think the rivers the types

of events we see as our climate changes means that this

will continue to evolve there are some real focal points now

following the recent events and they will be our priority areas

It has been a catastrophic month for Cumbria.

Can you give people there any

I think the reassurance we can give is that we will continue to work

really hasrd with partners and the community to do whatever

we can to reduce the risk of flooding and the impact

of flooding so we need to continue to work with those communithes

all year round not just to be seen to be turning up when it is raining.

But it's all too late for the thousands caught out

After Desmond came Eva bringing more rain to the north

The Government has promised ?50 million of emergency funds

for families and businesses struggling to get back on their feet

And ?40 million to repair roads and bridges.

But there's no word yet on loney for new flood defences.

After being here on the night that Cumbria flooded,

the damage I have seen since then has been

extraordinary, thousands and thousands of people are trying

But having talked to people the overwhelming feeling

is unless the flood defences of Cumbria are improved

From Cumbria, to Northumberland and on to Yorkshire the repair bill

Here in York some families believe they could have been

spared the misery of the destructive deluge.

Paul Hudson's been assessing the damage and asking

what we can learn from previous floods?

It's Boxing Day and the citx of York is under threat ? again.

York is used to floods ? the River Ouse has entered homes

and businesses many times over the years.

But this time it was the smaller river ? the Foss -

I think it's absolutely terrible if people

It's clearly not a natural phenomenon that's caused

It's a man-made problem that's created this.

This is the now infamous Foss barrier - its job is to protect

But when it was lifted, hundreds of homes were flooded

and residents want to know why.

So where did the water start coming in?

It came through the tiles in the utility room...

Martin Shoobridge and Julie Butters live in Huntington Road.

The Foss runs right behind their house but despite an automated

warning from the Environment Agency on Boxing Day they didn't rdally

believe their house would be flooded.

It was Boxing Day afternoon on the Sunday and we just looked out

of the window and it looked like there were quite a few people

I went out about an hour later and thought...

While we were stood there, you could see it coming up the road,

Did you have any urgency in moving your stuff

Martin was like "I'm going to have my tea."

As the evening wore on, the water crept ever nearer

Still at that point, we thought we'll lift some stuff

upstairs but it's probably not going to come in.

About five in the morning, we heard an almighty crash so I came

downstairs and there was two foot of water in the hallway.

So I waded through into the kitchen and two fridge freezers

There's no doubt that the rainfall figures

for both November and December were extraordinary but Martin

and Julie and other residents in Huntington Road believe

that the flooding to their houses was directly caused by the decision

I think it's just the question of, had it been avoidable?

If the answer to that is yes, that is extremely infurating.

They know all about the devastating effects

of flooding in the small town of Norton in North Yorkshird.

Mind the garden. In 1999 it was probably about three foot...

Di Keal is a local councillor but has also been flooded ott

We were out of the house after the first flood for about 12

months and we'd been back in the house for four months

After the devastating floods of 2000, just over ?10 millhon

was spent on flood defences to protect Malton and Norton

But, even so, since Boxing Day, the council and Environment Agency

have been pumping water 24/7 to stop riverside properties from flooding.

You can see the wall in the distance there

and this is actually flood wall as wdll.

That does keep the Derwent within its banks.

As you can also see with thd pumping that's going on behind us

there are still problems with water on the dry side.

So every time there is a flood, in the back

of your mind, you're thinking, "Will this flood defence hold?"

Exactly, and in 2012 there was water coming

It was very, very high - only about two bricks from the top

of the defences so it's a constant anxiety.

But what happens when the flood defence that you think will protect

While we were filming, representatives from

the Environment Agency turndd up in Huntington Road.

Martin and Julie let them know exactly how they felt.

If it was a decision made that led to this level

of devastation, people need to be held accountable and compensation

We need to await the investhgation into what happened.

So apparently there will be an investigation but it seels

this is not the first time

In this flood risk assessment produced in 2011,

which came to light last week thanks to BBC Radio York,

it is made clear that the Foss barrier failed for three to four

hours in the floods of November 2000.

It goes on to say that, 'Flooding in the River Foss

catchment was only narrowly avoided.'

The pumps were refurbished after the floods

of 2000 but as this document states, flood mapping undertaken

by the Environment Agency in 20 4 shows 'that the greatest risk

of flooding from the River Foss to the city of York

is as a direct result of the capacity of the pumps

And that's exactly what happened on Boxing Day.

So I've come to ask the Environment Agency

Who made the decision to allow the 600 properties along

The river levels in the Foss were higher than those in the Ouse

and if we hadn't raised the barrier as a result of that around 600

Those 600 are part of a widdr 1 00 properties would but had the barrier

remained in place they would have flooded anyway.

and tragic for those people who were and tragic for those people who were

flooded, but had the barrier remained in place, they would have

been flooded anyway. So just to be clear,

what you're saying is, that whether the barrier

was in the up or down position, those 600 properties would have

flooded come what may? Those 600 properties

would have flooded. So I guess the bottom line hs why

is this barrier not more resilient? Why did it fail to cope

with the volume of water OK - what was happening,

and we need to do further investigations

to understand exactly why this happened, was that water was coming

up through the floor The building is designed to be

resilient so we need to investigate If we need to make changes to make

the barrier more resilient, we will do that.

As for the future, is the barrier going to be

changed to cope with ever higher river levels?

As part of making sure we repair the pumping station and makd it

as resilient as possible we will look at increasing

the pumping capacity but that will be part of a longer

So in the short term you can't reassure the residents if that type

If that type of event happens again the pumps will work

We will find out what happened which means we wouldn't have to shut down

the pumps in the way we did. On the cupboard, and thankfully it did not

come up high enough to get there. So little comfort then

for Martin and Julie ? currently staying at a hotel in York

while work continues And over in Norton, Di Keal is in no

doubt that money ? a lot of money - is needed to defend people's

homes against flooding. Do you think we can justify spending

millions and millions of pounds of taxpayers

money on what will be Yes, I do and I feel

strongly about it. But I think the Government really

needs to take it seriously. It's not the way any of us

would have wanted to welcomd in the New Year ? A resoluthon

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