Call For Radical Change To Protect Tyne And Wear From Future Flooding

By Joe Daunt Location: Tyne and Wear
play video

Video: Better defences needed to protect against future flooding

There are calls for central government to intervene to help protect parts of Tyne and Wear from future flooding.

It’s after torrential rain on two separate occasions caused major problems around the area.

Dr. Geoff O’Brien, a Senior Lecturer in the School of Applied Sciences at Northumbria University said: “We should consider doing what they do in other areas of the world such as in Seoul and in Rotterdam.

“There they bring in huge underground storage tanks to collect the water.

“Then when it is safe to do so it can be pumped away.

“There is nothing wrong with the drainage around Newcastle but it has not been changed since the Victorian era.

“They never envisaged storms such as we are seeing today.”

The recent flooding affected the Swing Bridge after a culvert collapsed, forcing it to close.

Dr. O’Brien said: “If you look at how long it is taking to fix the Swing Bridge, imagine that on a larger scale.

“Infrastructure needs to change but it takes a long time.

“We need support from central government, plus we need to identify the most vulnerable areas and set up protection there first."

Sky Go Additional Benefits

Related stories

Your comments

More from News

Most popular