BBC Homepage World Service Education
BBC Homepagelow graphics version | feedback | help
BBC News Online
 You are in: UK: Wales
Front Page 
World 
UK 
England 
Northern Ireland 
Scotland 
Wales 
UK Politics 
Business 
Sci/Tech 
Health 
Education 
Entertainment 
Talking Point 
In Depth 
AudioVideo 



BBC Wales' s Nick Palit
"Last night there was a voluntary evacuation at Bangor on Dee"
 real 56k

BBC Wales's Sian Lloyd
"Getting about can still be difficult"
 real 56k

BBC Wales's Sian Lloyd
"Across Wales people are bracing themselves for more to come"
 real 56k

Tuesday, 31 October, 2000, 19:32 GMT
Flood defences to be reviewed
Flooded road
Roads became rivers as the flood water rose
The Welsh Environment Minister Sue Essex has announced a review of flood defence systems in Wales.

As Wales struggles to return to normality after the flloods, Ms Essex said climate change will make more severe weather inevitable.

"A great deal has been achieved over the years but I am not convinced that we have in place the institutions we need to cope with the greater challenges we now face," she said.

Meanwhile, householders and businesses across Wales continue mopping up after torrential rain caused widespread flooding.

With thousands of properties waterlogged or battered by gale force winds, the cost to insurance companies is likely to be huge.

And weather forecasters are warning there are more gales on the way on Wednesday night.

Street in Ruthin, N Wales
Some streets became passable only on foot
The control centre for Powys dealt with more than 800 calls on Monday.

The River Severn burst its banks in several places.

Hundreds of residents of Bangor on Dee near Wrexham are preparing to spend a second night away from their homes.

Over fifty people from the village stayed at a Leisure Centre last night after emergency services evacuated the area.

Torrential rain caused severe problems in the north east Wales on Monday evening.

Wrexham, Deeside, the Vale of Clwyd, Flint and Mold were particularly affected.

A combination of bad weather and a high tide on the River Dee meant Deeside suffered from widespread localised flooding, affecting 50 houses in all in Pentre and Mancot.

Flooded bus stop
Some roads could be closed until Friday
In Pentre, firefighters rescued four people, including two disabled persons.

Coastal towns were also hit, including Barmouth, Brynsiencyn in Anglesey and Llanddulas - where an elderly woman was rescued by firefighters from her home in Station Road.

One of the major highways in South Wales - the Heads of the Valleys road - will remain closed for the rest of this week after a landslide brought 2,500 tons of slurry down onto the road.

The three carriageways have been completely blocked and motorists are being warned of serious delays as diversions are put in place.

Rail services are still disrupted with Valley Lines' Treherbert to Pontypridd line still closed. Trains from Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare are terminating at Taffs Well with buses for onward journeys.


Sue Essex; Review of flood defences

First Great Western trains from west Wales are terminating at Bridgend with buses to Cardiff. Services from Cardiff to London are running but with a 20-minute delay.

The Heart of Wales Line is still closed.

The line from Newport to Hereford is open but is closed between Hereford and Church Stretton.

Meanwhile, severe flood warnings remain in place for the rivers Wye, Monnow, Vyrnwy, Upper Severn and the Lower Dee valley.

Search BBC News Online

Advanced search options
Launch console
BBC RADIO NEWS
BBC ONE TV NEWS
WORLD NEWS SUMMARY
PROGRAMMES GUIDE
See also:

30 Oct 00 | Wales
Storms wreak chaos around Wales
04 May 99 | World
Nature at its most powerful
08 Nov 99 | UK
Two injured in 'tornado'
Internet links:


The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites

Links to more Wales stories are at the foot of the page.


E-mail this story to a friend

Links to more Wales stories