Stay away: Town evacuated after dam wall partially collapses in heavy rain

The Derbyshire town of Whaley Bridge is being evacuated following a warning from the Environment Agency that lives are at risk.

It follows the partial collapse of a dam wall at Toddbrook Reservoir and the fear is that this could cause the River Goyt to rise “rapidly”, the agency said.

The 19th-century reservoir is in the High Peak area and sits above the town’s hundreds of homes and businesses.

On Thursday afternoon, police officers were going door to door to make sure residents were securing their homes before leaving, as a helicopter hovered overhead.

Meanwhile, council workers and mountain rescue vehicles were seen heading the other way – into town.

There are around 5,000 residents in the town, 16 miles southeast of Manchester, and they are being told to stay with friends or family or to head to a nearby high school for further instructions.

A police spokesperson said anyone who could not stay with friends or family would be accommodated but warned there was “limited capacity” for this.

They added: “There is a high probability that there will be significant flooding due to damage caused in recent severe weather.

“We understand that there will be some concern around not being able to return home, however, our priority is to ensure people are kept safe and well and are not taking unnecessary risks.

“This is not a decision that has been taken lightly and we appreciate that there is significant impact on this community, however, this is an unprecedented, fast-moving, emergency situation.”

Edwina Currie, who lives in a cottage above the reservoir, told Sky News the area had seen two weeks’ rain in 24 hours and that the reservoir had filled up “extremely quickly”.

She said strong winds on Wednesday caused the dam to overflow, which she described as a safety feature and nothing to be concerned about. However, the force of it had carried away some of the dam’s concrete facing, leaving a “great big hole” with water “pouring into it”.

She said residents were “obviously concerned” but the small community was focused on how they could help each other.

“The community here is excellent…absolutely buzzing with people offering help,” she said. “I’ve no doubt everyone will get well looked after.”

Dragging a suitcase up the town’s deserted high street, Whaley Bridge resident David Holt said of the dam: “If it’s going to go, it’s going to go straight through the village.”

Fellow resident Anna Aspinall said she and others had been called to help place sandbags in the area around the dam but they had been sent away after structural engineers said the “the wall is at high risk of failing”.

She added: “We are praying (the dam wall) holds whilst the Canal and River Trust try to drain the water from the reservoir.”

The Canal And River Trust said in a statement: “We have a team of engineers on site at the moment assessing the damage and determining what the next steps are.

“We will provide further updates as the picture becomes clearer.”

In other weather-related news:

• Heavy rain caused flooding on all railway lines between Manchester Airport and Wilmslow early on Thursday, according to train operator Northern.
• Flooding has damaged homes and partially destroyed a bridge in Poynton, Cheshire, forcing some to head to a rest centre at the local civic hall. Firefighters responded to 20 incidents, including people stranded by flooding.
• In nearby Wilmslow police are “dealing with flooding” and had evacuated affected residents, with Oakenclough Children’s Centre open as a rest centre.
• The Environment Agency said its teams were out in Cheshire, Derbyshire and Greater Manchester, where intense rainfall had caused flooding and disruption.
• There is currently one severe flood warning (relating to Whaley Bridge), six flood warnings meaning flooding is expected and immediate action is required (two for Poynton Brook, two for the River Bollin, one for the River Dove and one for Timperley Brook at Altrincham) and 14 flood alerts.

More follows…

(c) Sky News 2019: Stay away: Town evacuated after dam wall partially collapses in heavy rain