WATCHET has now released its flood plan – and is calling for volunteers to help make it watertight.
The long awaited plan brings almost a year of work to fruition, and means the town is now well prepared to deal with any future flooding.
The council’s environment and planning committee said it may seem a little out of place to be thinking about floods in the middle of the current weather, but it was keen to make people aware of the plan – and to also find more volunteers, especially out of the town centre in surrounding streets and areas.
“We can’t always be ready for the unexpected but we can look back to past experiences and try to plan ahead, and we have been busy preparing for the threat of flood, be it from land or sea,” said Cllr Robin Nuttall, chairman of the committee and representative on both Watchet Town Council and West Somerset Flood Groups.
“Watchet could be vulnerable to flooding from either run-off from the surrounding countryside or by storms and tidal surges from the Bristol Channel, occupying as it does a coastal position at the mouth of the Washford River; hopefully never both at the same time!
“Fortunately, we have had terrific help from bodies like the Environment Agency, Groundworks, Somerset Rivers Authority, and the hard work of [the town council’s] administrative officer Harriet Gibbard, in putting the whole thing together,” he said.
The full Flood Plan for Watchet has been formally adopted by the council and contains details of actions to be taken in the event of flood or in response to severe warning, including who to call, where to seek shelter, what people should do and how to help the wardens and emergency services best carry out their duties.