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Met Office: Worst of weather has passed Cumbria, winds to ease

5:10pm Thursday 8th December 2011 in Allerdale news Photograph of the Author By Patrick O'Kane, Senior News/Sport Reporter

FLOOD WARNING Road to Kirkstone Pass this morning. Pic: Ellis Butcher FLOOD WARNING Road to Kirkstone Pass this morning. Pic: Ellis Butcher

THE Met Office believes the worst of the stormy weather has passed over Cumbria and says winds should ease overnight.

Throughout the day roads across South Cumbria, Eden and North Yorkshire have been closed due to flooding, but conditions are to get better overnight.

A Met Office spokesman said: "We have an amber warning over Cumbria which is in effect until approximately 9pm tonight and the winds are expected to ease off.

"Tomorrow [Friday] should be much calmer and the worst of it has now passed, with the winds starting to back off a little bit."

The spokesman said there should be bright spells across Cumbria on Friday but temperatures would plummet to -2 or -3 degrees celsius overnight into Saturday, with a maximum day temperature on Saturday of 4 or 5 degrees celsius.

But despite conditions improving for the most part across the region, the A684 at Hawes has just been closed as the full effects hit North Yorkshire.

The road has been closed between Brunt Acres Road (Hawes) and Low Wood Lane (Leyburn). Flooding and surface water is affecting most of the A684 but it is particularly severe over the Yorkshire Dales.

Flooding has also been reported in the last 30 minutes on Fall Kirk at Aughton Road, Gressingham, which is affecting traffic passing through the village and over the bridge.

Related links

Reports have also come into the Westmorland Gazette from drivers who spotted branches falling into the road along the A684 near Kendal, after coming off the M6 at junction 37.

In the South Lakes a fallen tree closed the Atkinson Ground Road in Coniston between the B5285 junction and the Tinkler Beck and matrix signs were advising motorists to travel at 50mph on the M6 near junction 36.

Flood warnings were issued for Rivers Kent, Bela, Rothay, Brathay and Winster as well as the Rivers Eaumont, Lowther and Upper Eden.

Cumbria Police urged motorists to take extra care due to heavy rainfall and strong winds while the sluice gates at Newby Bridge were opened to help reduce the risks of overflow on Windermere.

Below are some of the problems encountered through Cumbria on Thursday.

Traffic problems

- The A592 Patterdale Road at Windermere and the A6 Shap Road in Kendal were closed due to flooding.

- At 7.44am, police were called by a man who got stuck in his vehicle while travelling through flood water on the A591 close to the Low Wood Hotel in Ambleside. The A591 has now been reopened.

- At 8.07am, police were called by a woman whose car broke down in a deep puddle on Thwaites Lane, Windermere.

- At 8.16am, a man called police to report that he was stuck in flood waters in a red Fiat on Moorhowe Road, Troutbeck.

- At 8.35am, police were called to reports of a Ford Fiesta stuck in flood water on the south side of the A6, just past Selside.

- The A595 from Kirkstone at Cookhouse corner was temporarily closed - There were reports of water on the south side of the A6, just past Selside and police officers have been in attendance.

- In Eden temporary road closures were in place in Plumpton (bottom of village) and at Garrigill due to a landslide onto the road from Alston Ruckcroft near Armathwaite.

- There were reports of flood water on Moorhowe Road, Troutbeck, the A592 at Glenridding, the A689 Nentsbury, the A6 at Shap, Appleby town centre, Salkeld Road, Penrith and Little Strickland.

- Atkinson Ground Road in Coniston was closed due to a fallen tree between the B5285 junction and the Tinkler Beck.

- Matrix signs were set to 50mph at junction 36 of the M6 and also for A590 for Kirkby Lonsdale due to strong winds.

- The westbound A66 was closed between Scotch Corner and Middleton Tyas after an earlier flooding incident.

Tell us about the flooding in your area by calling 01539 710157 or email your photos to patrick.okane@kendal.newsquest.co.uk

Last updated 6 minutes ago

Click on the links below for the latest traffic and weather updates.

Comments(10)

lakesailor says...
9:59am Thu 8 Dec 11

Are you sure? Traffic is moving at 10.00am on the Lowwood web cam
http://englishlakes.
co.uk/watersports/we
b_cam.aspx

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churchy66 says...
1:12pm Thu 8 Dec 11

Honestly - this weather was forecast - yesterday!! So when do the council start unblocking drains and releasing drain covers when there is already 2ft of standing water, this morning's drive into Ambleside was an absolute joke. Police giving duff information, council workers stood scratching their heads. All this took place between 8.30 - 9am - an hour later - clear - because the council had worked out that the drains were blocked with leaves. I would like to say a big thank you to the brilliant drivers who were around this morning between Cooks Corner and Langdale Chase - we all dealt with the flooding and helped one another. Yet again no preventative action with Cumbria County Council

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Gong farmer says...
1:52pm Thu 8 Dec 11

And we are currently having a debate at the moment over spending tax payer’s money on preventing a negligible amount of agricultural land at the bottom of the Lyth valley from getting wet? Come on, lets get real, we need to target funding at preventing flooding homes, business and infrastructure in the region.
http://www.thewestmo
rlandgazette.co.uk/n
ews/farm_and_country
/9394200.Lyth_Valley
_drainage_plan_charg
es_spark_row/

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nixon1 says...
2:16pm Thu 8 Dec 11

To be fair to the Cumbria Highways (without citing an argument) though i can't see how they are meant to inspect 36,000 gully's (drains) that we have in cumbria, every time we are due heavy rain.

I see that comments are aimied at funding and i question.
Would it be better for the Cumbria CC and Amey to travel around the county spending (£££) of tax payers money to remove a few leaves (which are usually the main cause of flooding around this time of year) off thousands of drains to clear flooding. Or would it be better for a able member of the public to clear these on the journey past the flooding?

As a tax payer i would much rather myslef attempt to clear the flood rather than at the cost of the council.

The cost would no doubt include:
Time for the logging of the call by the call centre staff.
Time for the engineer/technicain to view call report, inspect and instruct contractors to resolve.
Travelling time by 2 men in a van to site and time to clear the flooding.
Time to report the that the flood has been resolved.
Finally time for the Engineer/Technician to close the report.

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cat on hot brix says...
3:09pm Thu 8 Dec 11

Yet again, we were out 'flood fighting' at 7am (it is usually earlier than that!).
We shouldn't get flooded - we live up Kirkstone Pass! BUT.... the main Kirkstone Pass road drains don't get cleaned - unless we do it. We narrowly missed flood water coming into our house (again) thanks to our quick actions. Flood water was above welly height, we were soaked to the skin, but we battled on - because the Council don't give a ****! In fact, whilst we were up Kirkstone Pass itself - TWO Council trucks drove past us, the occupants looking at us DOING THEIR JOB! They never even got out of their trucks! We have been onto the Council for a number of years now - to do what we pay Council Tax for, maintaining roads, drains etc etc. On occasions, a small Council drain cleaning vehicle has cleaned up to 400 yards before our lane end, and the driver has said 'this vehicle hasn't the power to go up hills!' Ok, so why not send a vehicle that can? Alternatively, bring back a Lengthsman - the job that needs doing in our area isn't a costly one, it just wants REGULAR CLEANING! We're doing the Councils job for them, whilst they're getting paid for NOT doing it! We have reported to the Council, Environmental Health, our local MP's etc - at least the Environmental Health and MP's return our calls and are showing willing to help. But the Council? What ARE they doing for all the Council Tax we pay?

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Gong farmer says...
4:38pm Thu 8 Dec 11

cat on hot brix - they are currently spending a disproportionate amount of your tax on draining the land of a few vocal farmers at the bottom of the Lyth valley. This money would be better spent as some say above, where people are really affected. They have a consultation (badly publicised) on at the moment so worth having your say on where they spend the money before they increase people's council tax further across much of south Lakes to pay for no benefit.

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spragger says...
6:18pm Thu 8 Dec 11

The Big Society . .
'Adopt a Drain'
Why do we need a Council and all their staff?

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a.b.oatman says...
10:18pm Sat 10 Dec 11

How thick are some people? Drains only get blocked by leaves when excessive rain water causes a back log, What would be the point of clearing drains the day before heavy rain when they are not blocked.
When will people realise that severe weather is beyond the control of your council tax and will cause you some inconvienience! I was also in the traffic between Windermere and Ambleside and I would like to thank the guys who breached the wall at Low Wood in horrendous conditions rather than bemoan them.
When there is a bad frost do you expect the manufacturer or dealer of your car to come round and scrape the frost off your windscreen or do you do it yourself? So why do you expect to sit in comfort and wait for someone else to ease your journey rather than get off your backside and sort it yourself!

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cat on hot brix says...
5:42pm Mon 12 Dec 11

In response to a.b.oatman.....do not underestimate my intelligence by asking 'How thick are some people?' - especially when you don't know me, or the finer points of the problem we have in full! We have been fighting our local problem for over 3 years - and the drains don't get cleaned properly, in fact Council workers have actually said to us that 'they're blocked (or broken in some cases) and yet they don't appear to be concerned that our houses can flood - due to their lack of maintenance! No, I do not expect the manufacturer of my car to come out and de-ice my windscreen - what a pathetic comment you made there! Our drains have been blocked by leaves and silt for so long - they need specialist unblocking. Not by me (a 51 year old breast cancer patient) not by my neighbours (all pensioners of 70-odd and 80-odd) but by the Council - as it is THEIR JOB! For the past 3 years (at least) my neighbours and I have have sometimes been up from 4am, outside, over knee deep in floodwater which is surging and roaring down Kirkstone Pass - now until you have dealt with this a.b.oatman - please don't tell me I'm thick -or tell me to get off my backside and sort it - because that is exactly what I am doing! I would LOVE to (and should be able to) sit in the comfort of my home and feel safe - but I cannot! I have had to take days off work to fight the floods and clear up the debris afterwards - as the Council don't do it. I am not saying the Council should clear the drains before it rains because - as you put it - 'they are not blocked' - because here, a.b.oatman - they are well and truly blocked, WHICH IS CAUSING OUR FLOODING PROBLEMS! Believe me, when I see the Council actually carrying out maintenance in all weathers, I have every respect for them - but they ARE aware that Kirkstone has a problem, they ARE aware that the drains are severely blocked, they ARE aware that the road collapsed outside my house due to flooding, and they ARE aware that my property was damaged due to their lack of maintenance - and I was told by the Council that I could not claim compensation from them because the damage I had suffered was on 'private property!' Yes, MY private property, damaged because of THEIR NEGLIGENCE to a PUBLIC HIGHWAY! If I was thick, a.b.oatman, I would stay warm and dry in my house - and just let the floodwater in! What is wrong with being concerned for the safety and welfare of not just me and my property, but my elderly neighbours and theirs? Tell you what, give me your phone number - and next time we have to floodfight all night, you come and see what we have to do! Better still - get off your backside and come and give us a hand.

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nixon1 says...
10:26am Wed 14 Dec 11

a.b.oatman wrote:
How thick are some people? Drains only get blocked by leaves when excessive rain water causes a back log, What would be the point of clearing drains the day before heavy rain when they are not blocked. When will people realise that severe weather is beyond the control of your council tax and will cause you some inconvienience! I was also in the traffic between Windermere and Ambleside and I would like to thank the guys who breached the wall at Low Wood in horrendous conditions rather than bemoan them. When there is a bad frost do you expect the manufacturer or dealer of your car to come round and scrape the frost off your windscreen or do you do it yourself? So why do you expect to sit in comfort and wait for someone else to ease your journey rather than get off your backside and sort it yourself!
i completely agree with your comment (although a little "brash"), people need to help each other out a little more. bring back a little community spirit, roll those sleeves up and help out.

It seems there is a large amount of blame put upon the council in times of bad weather, but lest not forget these are the people who do roll up their sleeves on a daily basis and in bad weather to help the community. But it must be understood they cannot be everywhere, helping everyone at once.

cat on hot brix, i do not know the in's and out's of your situation but from what you have said i can only imagine how you feel and i send my best wishes that your problem gets resolved without anymore upset (and flooding).

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