Cockermouth, UK – Rich Country (MEDC)
\nPicture
\nCauses: Rain
\nA massive downpour of rain (31.4cm), over a 24-hour period triggered the floods that hit Cockermouth and Workington in Cumbria in November
\n2009<\/p>\n
What caused all the rain?
\nThe long downpour was caused by a lengthy flow of warm, moist air that came down from the Azores in the mid-Atlantic. This kind of airflow is
\ncommon in the UK during autumn and winter, and is known as a \u2018warm conveyor\u2019. The warmer the air is, the more moisture it can hold.<\/p>\n
What else helped to cause the Cumbrian Floods?
\n\u00b7 The ground was already saturated, so the additional rain flowed as surface run-off straight into the rivers
\n\u00b7 The steep slopes of the Cumbrian Mountains helped the water to run very rapidly into the rivers
\n \u00b7 The rivers Derwent and Cocker were already swollen with previous rainfall
\n\u00b7 Cockermouth is at the confluence of the Derwent and Cocker (i.e. they meet there)<\/p>\n
The effects of the flood
\n\u00b7 Over 1300 homes were flooded and contaminated with sewage
\n \u00b7 A number of people had to be evacuated, including 50 by helicopter, when the flooding cut off Cockermouth town centre
\n\u00b7 Many businesses were flooded causing long-term difficulties for the local economy
\n\u00b7 People were told that they were unlikely to be able to move back into flood-damaged homes for at least a year. The cost of putting right the damage was an average
\n of \u00a328,000 per house
\n\u00b7 Insurance companies estimated that the final cost of the flood could reach \u00a3100 million
\n\u00b7 Four bridges collapsed and 12 were closed because of flood damage. In Workington, all the bridges were destroyed or so badly damaged that they were declared
\n unsafe \u2013 cutting the town in two. People faced a huge round trip to get from one side of the town to the other, using safe bridges
\n\u00b7 One man died\u2013 PC Bill Barker<\/p>\n
Responses to the flood
\n \u00b7 The government provided \u00a31 million to help with the clean-up and repairs and agreed to pay for road and bridge repairs in Cumbria
\n\u00b7 The Cumbria Flood Recovery Fund was set up to help victims of the flood. It reached \u00a31 million after just 10 days
\n\u00b7 Network Rail opened a temporary railway station in Workington
\nThe \u2018Visit Cumbria\u2019 website provided lists of recovery services and trades, and people who could provide emergency accommodation<\/p>\n
Management of future floods at Cockermouth
\n\u00a34.4 million pound management scheme
\nNew flood defence walls will halt the spread of the river
\nFunding from Government and local contributors
\nRiver dredged more regularly to deepen the channel
\nNew embankments raise the channel height to reduce the likelihood of extra floods
\nNew floodgates at the back of houses in Waterloo street<\/p>\n
Pakistan, Asia – Poor Country
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\nAt the end of July 2010 usually heavy monsoon rains in northwest Pakistan caused rivers to flood and burst their banks. The map below shows the
\nhuge area of Pakistan affected by flooding. The floodwater slowly moved down the Indus River towards the sea.<\/p>\n
Continuing heavy rain hampered the rescue efforts. After visiting Pakistan, the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, said that this disaster was worse than anything he\u2019d ever seen. He described the floods as a slow-moving tsunami.<\/p>\n
The effect of the floods
\n\u00b7 At least 1600 people died
\n \u00b7 20 million Pakistanis were affected (over 10% of the population), 6 million needed food aid
\n\u00b7 Whole villages were swept away, and over 700,000 homes were damaged or destroyed
\n\u00b7 Hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis were displaced, and many suffered from malnutrition and a lack of clean water
\n\u00b7 5000 miles of roads and railways were washed away, along with 1000 bridges
\n\u00b7 160,000km2 of land were affected. That\u2019s at least 20% of the country
\n\u00b7 About 6.5 million acres of crops were washed away in Punjab and Sindh provinces<\/p>\n
The responses to the floods
\n \u00b7 Appeals were immediately launched by international organisation, like the UK\u2019s Disasters Emergency Committee \u2013 and the UN \u2013 to help Pakistanis hit by the
\n floods
\n\u00b7 Many charities and aid agencies provided help, including the Red Crescent and Medecins Sans Frontieres
\n\u00b7 Pakistan\u2019s government also tried to raise money to help the huge number of people affected
\n\u00b7 But there were complaints that the Pakistan government was slow to respond to the crisis, and that it struggled to cope
\n\u00b7 Foreign Governments donated millions of dollars, and Saudi Arabia and the USA promised $600 million in flood aid. But many people felt that the richer foreign governments didn\u2019t do enough to help
\n\u00b7 The UN\u2019s World Food Programme provided crucial food aid. But, by November 2010, they were warning that they might have cut the amount of food handed out, because of a lack of donations from richer countries<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"