Agenda item

This report provides a review of the responses to flooding in York following storms in February and early March 2020 and an update from the Environment Agency on progress with the York Flood Alleviation Scheme, and seeks the Executive Member’s views on a range of recommendations.

Resolved: That the report and the update at Annex 2 be noted and the following be agreed:

i.     Emergency Response Procedures – co-location of internal officers worked well and should be reinforced in the flood plan, linkages to the York Flood Group should be reviewed.

ii.    Emergency Response Procedures – further awareness sessions for key duty officers across agencies are to be considered to ensure awareness and understanding of their roles.

iii.   Operational – acting early to deploy temporary measures was successful, this should be recognised and supported as best practice and all teams be encouraged to act in this way.

iv.   Operational – The flood resilience measures under consideration for Fulford are to be developed further and additional funding be sought to enable their delivery.

v.   Operational – Sandbags were deployed in accordance with risk and forecast, this worked as an effective use of resource but need to communicate this better to affected communities so they know what to expect.

vi.   Warning and Informing – Forecast levels were included for Viking recorder on the .gov.uk website as part of a trial. This functionality was not available on all EA level gauges. The website includes a statement to refer to alerts and warnings for information. Better understanding was needed by all users of this service to explain its limitations. All communications should provide supporting information to explain this, Environment Agency were supportive of this and example text was provided at Annex 1 of the report.

vii.    Communications and Media – The Single Version of The Truth worked well to prove a rolling update on the forecasts, escalation and impacts of the flooding. The consequences of River Ouse flooding were well known and responses rehearsed, messaging and communication can be developed in advance of flooding and built into the flood plan.

viii. Impact – Environment Agency led schemes in areas affected by the event were essential to provide future flood resilience, all involved were to commit to their effective and timely delivery.

ix.   Impact – The funding available for flood signage updates should be informed by feedback from the event to ensure it was targeted effectively and has maximum impact.

x.   Impact – Council teams and partners support affected businesses wherever possible, businesses will be encouraged to ensure they were prepared for future flooding and business continuity planning takes this into account.

Reason:  To confirm that the Executive Member was aware of the current position and to ensure that progress continues to be made on flood alleviation and prevention in the City of York.

The Executive Member considered a report that provided a review of response to flooding in York following storms in February and early March 2020 and an update from the Environment Agency on the progress of the York Flood Alleviation Scheme.

The Flood Risk Manager, the Assistant Director of Transport, Highways and Environment and the Environment Agency Project Director for the York Flood Risk Programme were all in attendance to provide an update, where they informed the Executive Member that:

·        February 2020 had been confirmed as the wettest on record leading to four significant river peak levels, leaving significant areas of the city centre and outlying villages in flood alert and warning status for more than three weeks, with riverside access routes for pedestrians and cyclists being underwater for the majority of February.

·        All flood plans including temporary measures were enacted by City of York Council, the Environment Agency (EA) and Yorkshire Water and the cities flood defences prevented flooding to around 1056 properties and the A19 access was maintained, which would have been flooded previously.

·        All partners worked collaboratively to deliver flood response operations and communications and thanks was expressed to City of York Council officers who provided a 24 hour on call service.

·        A Single Version of The Truth document was developed which detailed all aspects of the emerging incidents, latest forecasts, operational actions and likely impacts. This was updated daily and distributed to all key internal departments, Councillors, Parish Councillors, flood groups, the Local Resilience Forum and MPs.

·        Forecast flood levels shown on the gov.uk website could be over predicted and differ from the information officers provided to partners and the public.

Officers highlighted the recommendations in the report and they answered questions raised by the Executive Member, where it was noted that:

·        Timely and direct messages to residents was essential and that communications regarding the impact of flooding and preventative measures available should be issued from early autumn.

·        The Single Version of The Truth document would be developed as messaging and communications were improved in advance of flooding and built into the flood plan.

·        Officers would consider how they monitored the raw data to ensure residents received tailored and up to date forecasts, flood warnings and alerts in their areas.

·        The replacement flood gate at Lendal Bridge had been delayed and would now be installed in spring 2021.

The Executive Member commended all officers and partners for ensuring that progress continued to be made on flood alleviation and prevention in York and she requested officers monitor the delay and installation of the flood gate.

Resolved: That the report and the update at Annex 2 be noted and the following be agreed:

i.    Emergency Response Procedures – co-location of internal officers worked well and should be reinforced in the flood plan, linkages to the York Flood Group should be reviewed.

ii.     Emergency Response Procedures – further awareness sessions for key duty officers across agencies were to be considered to ensure awareness and understanding of their roles.

iii.      Operational – acting early to deploy temporary measures was successful, this should be recognised and supported as best practice and all teams be encouraged to act in this way.

iv.      Operational – The flood resilience measures under consideration for Fulford were to be developed further and additional funding be sought to enable their delivery.

v.      Operational – Sandbags were deployed in accordance with risk and forecast, this worked as an effective use of resource but need to communicate this better to affected communities so they know what to expect.

vi.      Warning and Informing – Forecast levels were included for Viking recorder on the .gov.uk website as part of a trial. This functionality was not available on all EA level gauges. The website included a statement to refer to alerts and warnings for information. Better understanding was needed by all users of this service to explain its limitations. All communications should provide supporting information to explain this, Environment Agency were supportive of this and example text was provided at Annex 1 of the report.

vii.       Communications and Media – The Single Version of The Truth worked well to prove a rolling update on the forecasts, escalation and impacts of the flooding. The consequences of River Ouse flooding were well known and responses rehearsed, messaging and communication can be developed in advance of flooding and built into the flood plan.

viii.      Impact – Environment Agency led schemes in areas affected by the event were essential to provide future flood resilience, all involved were to commit to their effective and timely delivery.

ix.      Impact – The funding available for flood signage updates should be informed by feedback from the event to ensure it was targeted effectively and has maximum impact.

x.      Impact – Council teams and partners support affected businesses wherever possible, businesses will be encouraged to ensure they were prepared for future flooding and business continuity planning takes this into account.

Reason:  To confirm that the Executive Member was aware of the current position and to ensure that progress continued to be made on flood alleviation and prevention in the City of York.