Gordon Brown today visited flood-stricken communities in Cumbria hit by the heaviest rainfall since records began.
The torrential downpour has destroyed homes, businesses and claimed the life of a policeman, swept away as he helped motorists off a bridge.
The prime minister arrived in Penrith, Cumbria, this morning with environment minister Hilary Benn to survey the damage and meet with members of the emergency services and pledged an extra £1m of government money to help.
The region is bracing itself for more rain this afternoon as rescue teams continue to search for those still trapped in their flooded homes. The emergency services have also warned those flooded out not to try and return to their homes.Yesterday’s downpour was the heaviest since records began, with 314mm, more than one foot, of rain falling in Cumbria in the space of 24 hours.
Forecasters predict there will be a further 20mm to 40mm of rain fall in the region today.
There are currently 22 flood warnings in place across the North West of England, parts of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Eleven bridges have been closed in Cumbria, after four were brought down by the swelling rivers, while walkers have advised to keep away from the fells and waterways.
PC Bill Barker was helping motorists on a bridge over the River Derwent, near Workington when the crossing caved-in, yesterday morning.
The father-of-four’s body was later found on a beach in Allonby, ten miles away.
The prime minister joined PC Barker’s family and colleagues in paying tribute to the policeman and his ‘heroic’ final actions.
Addressing officers at Cumbria Police headquarters in Penrith, Brown said: "What you've done in the last few days is tackle one of the greatest rainfalls we've seen in our country and you've done it with such superb organisation, that I want to tell you on behalf of the whole country how proud we are of you."Emergency services are being aided by RAF and RNLI search and rescue teams in the worst hit communities.
In Cockermouth more than 200 people had to be rescued by RAF helicopters, when floodwaters rose to eight feet.
Last night hundreds of people were forced to stay in emergency shelters after fleeing their homes, others have been advised to stay with relatives.
It was estimated that 1,100 homes across the Cumbria were affected by flooding. About 1,060 homes have lost power and 22 houses in the Low Lawton area were being provided with bottled water after supplies were affected.
Although waters are stating to recede, the centre of Cockermouth remains flooded and strewn with debris washed from homes and businesses.
Community leaders and insurers are already counting the costs of the damage and the Association of British Insurers estimates the flooding will result in payouts totalling between £50million and £100million.
Cumbria County Council leader Jim Buchanan said: “I’m pleased the Prime Minister is here and showing continued support but we need to start getting the county back to normal as quickly as possible and we need some certainty about the resources which might be available to us so that we can plan accordingly."
Cllr Buchanan warned full recovery from the crisis would be a measured in “months and years, not days”.
The county council has pledged £50,000 to a flood recovery welfare fund, matching the £50,000 already confirmed from the North West Development Agency.
Police said a brief respite in the downfall this morning had provided emergency services with the chance to plan operations for the weekend.
A spokesman said: “Priorities will include protecting the people of Cumbria, checking the structural integrity of bridges and continuing to check affected properties as flood waters recede, as well as responding to specific calls for service.
“Cumbria Police have mobilised their entire work force in shift patterns and are in a state of readiness to deal with situations as they arise.”
Source:The times
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