Boscastle (2004)

Effects• Acts like a funnel because of its location

• A lot of vegetation

• Steep-v shaped valley

• Was high tide at the same time

• Very wet summer

• Remains of Hurricane Alex

• 440 million gallons water, 75mm of rain in 2 hours

• 100 cars destroyed

• No one dies

• Bridge across river caused many problems

Physical Impacts• Channel changed- it widened and deepened by force of water, increasing the hydraulic radius• Trees up-rooted- it was a steep sided valley• Wildlife and habitats destroyed especially on the banks of the river• Deposition on the flood plain- positive impact 20cm of sediment deposited• Deposition in the channel which could cause the capacity of the channel to be reduced so there is

a increase in the risk of flooding• Fuel and oil leakages into the harbour and debris washed into the sea• River Valancey cut itself a new channel whilst in flood

Social Impacts• Community fragmented• People had to rent property outside the village• Children had to go to different schools• Insurance claims take a long time and can cause stress• Disruption to people’s lives• Sewage main burst- weren’t allowed in homes because of health and

safety

Economic Impacts• 25 business destroyed

• 50 building's suffered flood damage

• 4 foot-bridges washed away

• Visitor Centre destroyed

• Pavements and gardens washed away

• £20 million in insurance claims

• 50 cars washed away

• Rescue operation

• Lost income of tourism for a period of time so 20 accommodation providers shut down

• An increase in the amount of tourists after the flood because of the media attention it got

• Caused long-term disruption to the village during the re-building phase

Flood Management and Re-Building• £4.6 million project

• Historic village with land owned by the national trust so re-building had to be within certain guidelines with the national trust

• An area of outstanding natural beauty

• Environmental agency in charge of rebuilding the village

• A lot of material reclaimed from flood and used in re-building phase. 300 tonnes of walling stone

• Multi-agency scheme- Halcrow, construction company involved

• 2 main objectives- Increase capacity of river channel and reduce structures causing blockages

Flood Management• Straightened the river and made it wider and deeper to increase capacity

• Trash screens- to stop tree/boulders from blocking the channels. Require maintenance

• Raise car park and widen river channel next to car park and create a walkway next to the river

• Ensure trees and vegetation are removed that are directly next to the river

• The bridge was made so it was higher above the river to prevent any blockages

• New flood walls

• More trees planted within the drainage basin to hold more water back

• New sewage system

• Created an area of slower flow where large sediment can be deposited and the river can spread out so it can behave naturally

• 1 in 75 year flood defence