Flood Warnings and Alerts:
The Environment Agency will issue 3 types of Alert/Warning:
It is important to remember that these are issued at Predicted Levels, not actual.
Flood Alert: This means that flooding is possible and you need to stay alert and vigilant, making early preparations for a potential flood.
Flood Warning: This means that flooding is expected and immediate action is required to protect yourself and your property.
Severe Flood Warning: Severe flooding is expected, and is likely to cause significant risk to life and destruction of property.
In Appleby we receive a lot of flood alerts for The Sands area of town – these are issued once the river is expected to reach a water level of 1.8m or over. To put this into perspective, the water does not get onto the road on The Sands until it has reached a level of 3.1m and therefore an alert is a very early trigger.
The Water Safety Code:
Did you know that the effect of entering cold water is often underestimated and that anything below 15 degrees is defined as cold water?
Rivers and lakes are often colder than 12 degrees even in summer.
The following links guide you towards the Water Safety Code and resources
The Water Safety Code | Royal Life Saving Society UK ( RLSS UK )
How to stay safe in Chilly Water
Cold Water Shock: How to Stay Safe in Chilly Waters | Go Paddling
Sign up for Flood Warnings
Sign up to receive Flood Warnings by phone, email or text message if your home or business is at risk of flooding.
You’ll need to provide:
- the address you’re registering
- a phone number you can be contacted on day or night
- an email address
https://www.gov.uk/sign-up-for-flood-warnings
You can also register by calling Floodline on 0345 988 1188
The Flood Hub
The Flood Hub is a great source of information and resources to support householders, businesses and communities across the North West in becoming more flood resilient.
Check the River Level for the River Eden in Appleby
Flood Risk Management
Flood Resilience
Visit the CAfS website for a really useful eight-page guide to adapting your home for flood resilience.
Not sure what flood resilience measures you need? You might be eligible for a free home audit.
And, follow along as a house in Appleby is renovated to cope better with flooding in the future.
https://cafs.org.uk/for-your-home/make-your-home-flood-resilient/
