Areas across the eastern UK put on flood alert by Denise Kane
Surge barriers were closed and people were evacuated from their homes as a storm surge travelled south through the North Sea. The surge threatened to deluge many low lying coastal areas. The Environmental Agency (EA) has warned of ‘extreme danger to life and property’ along coastal areas of Norfolk and Suffolk and parts of Kent and Essex, with the Dartford Creek and Thames barriers being closed yesterday evening to defend against the surge.
A storm surge is a rise of water offshore, which is associated with a deep low pressure system. This particular surge was created from the remnant system from Hurricane Noel, which began to track north of the UK across the Atlantic on Thursday. The fall in pressure beneath the centre of the storm causes sea levels to well to higher than normal levels. As the wind changed direction, and the system moved away the surge of water began to travel south through the North Sea towards Holland and Belgium, skimming the eastern coast of the UK.
Flood defences along the entire Dutch coastline have been put on high alert, with officials closing the southern Oosterschelde barrier. In the UK, the areas under the greatest risk are along the south coast of Great Yarmouth, including Lowestoft and Felixstowe. At the time of writing, so far none of the flood defences have suffered major breeching.
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