Tidal Surge.

In message , Lee_D writes

You're not suggesting that the media are actually exaggerating things, just to fill their 24hour news slots? Can't be all that bad - we're not even on standby. Mind you I don't suppose the tidal surge will come up the Trent as far as Stoke will it?

In message , hugh writes

They wouldn't do that would they? I feel that this morning there was the potential of significant flooding and when it didn't happen a story had to be produced. From what I endured this morning alone :- GMTV : "Look how the sea has flooded across two miles of salt marsh", it's bleedin salt marsh which it tidal and floods regularly that's why it's salt marsh! Or Radio 2 : "Happisburgh is currently flooded due to the 10 feet higher than normal high tide" - yes, the very town where the 40 foot cliffs are currently being eroded!!!!!

Crying wolf is going to backfire big time soon ...

damp squid...

Is there any other kind? It's a "damp squib", or if you were cracking a pun, "ha ha" :-P

Or is that a damp squid you are thinking of ?

Steve

Round and round we go - so best add some content.

Many years ago down in Faversham Kent (maybe 1990 ish) I remember a Northerly wind and 'spring' tides. I had been out at the Shipwrights Arms way out on the mashes and diverted on the way home to watch the tide (about midnight). It came up the creek between the sea walls where all the boats normally in mud berths are tied up to wooden stagings driven into the creek. The tide just kept coming - the boats, floating, were above the stagings and according to the lengths of rope and the size of the boat were either in distress or mightily trying to rip the stagings out of the creek bed, and the sea crossed the normal walkways and came right to the top of the sea wall either side of the creek. In the odd place where the wall was an inch or so low it came over, and in other places it was that little bit higher.

If the water had come up another few inches the amount that would have come over would have been staggering. The supply is undending, this is not waves splashing, but big volumes pouring over. It was a truly awe inspiring moment to see the sea just keep rising, and realise that the tiny bit that poured over wouldn't affect the level at all - it would just keep coming.

I suppose that is what happened in New Orleans, and one day when the weather and the tides get the timing right, then it will happen again here. I think the boys in the estuary suspect that the sea walls are set so that the Kent and Essex mashes will take the worst out of it before it heads up the Thames. Who can tell.

Steve

yes, it was weak

Probably all that swimming.

The estimate for Suffolk is the sea level ended up about 20cms from causing a major disaster. I am not sure if that is a big safety margin or not ........ doesn't sound much to me. I wonder if the improvements that have been added to sea defences since '53 had a major impact on 'saving the day'.

Richard

I think all the right things were done tbh for all the right reasons. In contrast to our american friends experience a short while back. Either way they were dammed pretty much as if it had of gone fill tilt there would be a load of peeps no doubt saying enough wasn't done. I'd guess that for the next 15 to 20 years there are enough peeps living to remember the imact of the last floods there, the danger comes when they have all passed on and peeps look at future events as crying wolf.

Lee D

Hmm, in that case we should build houses on them then we would definitely have a flood to report.

Wot's that in English? ... 7 3/4" As these things go I thinks quite a bit, yes you'll get waves sloshing over the top but even quite a number large waves comeing over anre not going to transport anything like the amount of water that being just 1/2" over the top will.

Agreed. The authorities are caught between a rock and hard place. The prospect of a large tidal surge was forecast way back on Sunday. It didn't appear in the mass hsyteria, sorry media, until the day before the time of arrival. With the forecast indicating that the defences might be over whelmed the authorities has no choice but to evacuate those likley to be flooded should the defenses be over topped or, much, much, worse fail.

Of course the media were peed off as the story didn't turn out, luckly, to be a disaster.

It's all down to the timing. The surge moved down the North Sea a bit slower than expected, so by the time that it arrived the tidal levels were already dropping, had it coincided with high water (or the air pressure been lower) it could have been rather messier than it was.

Adrian

Yup, I reckon you are dead right - the timing was a little out and saved the day. As far as I can see all the actions taken were correct and appropriate. Sadly the timing wasn't out for the BBC, if only there had been a feud on Big Brother, or maybe a footballer had hurt his foot, or a celebrity divorce, or infedility in the government - but with no juicy gossip they decided to try and escalate it into a major panic - and they didn't even make a good job of that. I was surprised when they read out an e-mail from a woman having trouble to get through to the flood hotline - from Bolton ! Now THAT would be a high tide - or is there another Bolton on the East Coast that I have never come across ? In which case apologies (again).

Steve

In article , Cheshire Steve writes

There are a couple near the East coast, one to east of Edinburgh and one near Alnwick, but both are far enough inland to have kept their feet dry even with the sort of surge forecast last week.

Adrian