Leader: Tragedy as flood waters take their toll
Never underestimate the ability of Mother Nature to wreak havoc on its unsuspecting population.
Never underestimate the ability of Mother Nature to wreak havoc on its unsuspecting population.
Today, a man paid the ultimate price when he was swept to his death in torrential flood waters which drowned large parts of Shropshire.
A month’s worth of rain fell in little more than half an hour which, on top of the downpours from the past couple of weeks, was simply too much for drains to handle.
Technology has come a long way since that notorious day in 1987, when weatherman Michael Fish famously – and wrongly – dismissed the possibility of a hurricane battering our shores.
But, although we can now see treacherous weather heading our way far earlier, and in much more detail, it remains difficult to predict exactly what will happen once the rain hits the ground.
We are seeing images of people being rescued from their flooded homes with increasing regularity.
Climate change campaigners will argue that it is a sign of global warming, but it is not quite as black and white.
In Shropshire, there are fewer trees to suck up the water, and more homes spewing out into the drains. All of this magnifies the impact of a flash flood.
Those who have never been faced with a torrent of rising water wonder why victims do not see the peril approaching. It is clear that, by the time they do, it is too late to do anything about it.
Today’s deluge was the latest chapter of a washout summer which has already drenched Shropshire roads and fields. How ironic that, this time last month, we were fearing a hosepipe ban.
It is a reminder of how quickly things can change. And how dangerous it can be to underestimate the unpredictability of the increasingly erratic British weather.
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