Due to climate change, flooding in the UK has become much more common in recent years. While global warming has increased the frequency and severity of flooding in the 21st century, British floods have been wreaking havoc for many years.
Scientists have been recording the most devastating occurrences in British history since records began in 1776.
© Benjamin Evans / Wikimedia.org / Public Domain
Why is climate change increasing flooding?
As the atmosphere warms up, the air holds 7% more water vapour for each one degree Celsius increase in temperature. Then, as the air cools, this water vapour turns into rain droplets. These combine to form heavy rainfall that leads to flooding.
When there’s exceptionally heavy rainfall over a short period of time, sudden flash floods often result. More moderate rainfall over a period of a few days can result in rivers and dams overflowing.
In addition, global warming is also melting the polar ice caps, posing a serious threat to coastal regions. Antarctica has lost around three trillion tonnes of ice in the past 25 years, causing sea levels to rise by 8mm and heralding a global crisis.
In future, scientists believe the sea level could rise by as much as five metres if climate change continues at its current rate.
Some countries, such as the Netherlands, have been dealing with high water levels for a long time. As a result, they have constructed the most sophisticated flood barriers in the world.
However, countries such as the UK traditionally haven’t been subject to such heavy rainfall on a regular basis, so the authorities are still adapting to make the land less vulnerable to dangerous floods.
Financial impact of flooding
UK flood damage costs businesses a fortune, with almost 1/3 of premises in the UK believed to be at risk – the average cost of flood damage to a company is £82,000.
While insurance can cover some of the costs, studies show small businesses close for an average of 50 working days when they have experienced flooding. This leads to a loss of trade and damage to their reputation. In addition, insurance premiums will rise. As the situation worsens and some regions become known as a high flood risk, insurance cover will come at such a high price that it may be unaffordable for smaller businesses.
According to data from Compare the Market, the average cost of repairing a flood damaged residential property in Britain is £4,500. However, this figure varies greatly between regions, with householders in Wales and London typically paying around £9,700 and £9,100 respectively to repair water damage.
As well as the financial implications, there’s also the inconvenience of having to find somewhere to stay while your home dries out. You will probably have to replace your furniture too, although luckily, one solution is using emergency flood furniture rental services to reduce the hassle.
We’ve compiled a list of the most devastating floods in British history since records began. Read on to find out if your area has been affected.
1. Thames flood of 1928
Fourteen people died and 4,000 were made homeless in the horrific Thames flood of 1928, which occurred following heavy snowfall at Christmas 1927. The last major flood to date to affect central London, it occurred on 7th January 1928.
It began after deep snow in the Cotswolds (at the source of the Thames 80 miles outside the capital) thawed rapidly. The water volume of the Thames doubled, and an upstream surge resulted as the tide turned. The water suddenly breached the Thames embankment and local homes flooded, causing residents to swim for their life. Sadly, not everyone made it.
The damage took many years to repair, with properties at Millbank, the most seriously damaged area, deemed beyond saving. Rebuilt from scratch, the dwellings and warehouses were completely demolished. It was 46 years before the Thames Barrier project to combat flooding began, with the barrier finally being completed in 1984.
2. Lynmouth flood of 1952
The terrible Lynmouth flood of 1952 caused the deaths of 34 local residents after heavy rain in Exmoor, Devon, caused severe flooding. Rivers of flood water poured into the north Devon village overnight on August 15th and 16th, causing the UK’s worst river flood disaster in history.
More than 100 properties were completely destroyed, killing local residents as they tried to escape to safety. Even today, more than 70 years later, the tragedy is still commemorated. It hit the close-knit community so hard that the former lifeboat station became a memorial hall to honour those who had lost their life.
The fast-flowing flood water thundered through Lynmouth, accumulating debris en route and smashing bridges, buildings and vehicles, creating more hazards the longer it continued. At the time, BBC news reporters interviewed surviving residents who had witnessed the carnage.
Local man Ken Oxenham told the reporter he saw a whole row of cottages “fold up like a pack off cards” as they were swept away by the river. He listened in horror to the screams of the residents, many of whom were his friends. Almost the whole village had to be rebuilt due to the natural disaster.
3. Great flood of 1968
Torrential rainfall caused 6,250 square kilometres of land stretching across Sussex, Hampshire, Surrey, Kent and Essex to flood in September 1968. The disaster claimed the lives of eight people and flooded 3,000 properties.
The region was hit by more than 100mm of heavy rain between July and September 1968. It was caused by a trough of low pressure, with thunderstorms and exceptionally heavy rain battering southeast England.
The worst floods occurred on 15th September, with the most severe inland flooding in 100 years hitting the Home Counties. East Grinstead, Crawley, Lewisham, Horley, Petersfield, Tilbury, Redhill, Tunbridge Wells and Tonbridge were largely under water.
The 9.50am train from Charing Cross to Hastings was diverted along the Edenbridge line, but was surrounded by water at Edenbridge railway station, leaving 150 passengers trapped for 12 hours. Most of the London borough of Lewisham was submerged. The town’s mayor, Alderman Clifford Combes, owned a boat and personally helped to evacuate residents.
4. Boscastle flood of 2004
An estimated ONE BILLION litres of water smashed through Boscastle in Cornwall on 16th August 2004, when two rivers, Jordan and Valency, burst their banks after 75mm of rain fell in only two hours. Amazingly, not one person lost their life, but the damage to the picturesque fishing village was unprecedented.
The Environment Agency described the devastating flash flood as “among the most extreme ever recorded in Britain”. Homes, shops and pubs were flooded and around 50 cars were completely washed away in the torrent of water.
Lifeboats, helicopters and the fire brigade were deployed to lead a major rescue operation. The emergency services coordinated it with such efficiency that every single person was saved.
The church was filled with 6ft of mud and water, many trees were completely uprooted and swept into residents’ gardens, and the sheer weight of the water damaged riverbanks, pavements and gardens, as well as properties.
The flood caused a loss of tourism income, while local wildlife habitats were eroded. A major village rebuild project caused disruption for four years.
5. Floods across the UK in 2007
The period May to July 2007 was the wettest in the UK since records began in 1776. In June, there was double the usual national average rainfall across the whole of Britain, making it one of the wettest months on record. Thirteen people died as a result of the disaster.
In one of the worst ever incidents of UK flooding, much of the country was under water. Parts of Scotland, Wales, the Midlands and southeast England escaped the worst of the floods, but the natural disaster brought misery for everyone else.
Millions of households were hit by power and water cuts, while the medieval market town of Tewkesbury in Gloucestershire became an island, trapping the inhabitants, after the surrounding rivers, Avon and Severn, burst their banks.
The flooding was so devastating that both civil and military rescuers joined the biggest rescue efforts in peacetime Britain. Had the emergency services not worked diligently to save the people trapped by floods, the fatalities would have been much higher, according to reports.
Since the 2007 floods, there have been other incidents up and down the country, but nothing on the scale of the horrific flooding of 16 years ago, but sadly, according to climate experts, flooding in the UK is likely to become a lot more common.