Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
FLOOD ALERT
The New River has risen 2 feet since 5 o'clock and is now almost at the top of the banks. If it rises any more it will flood into adjacent gardens/properties.
I have called the police and Haringey Out of Hours Service. I thought possibly Thames Water could open downstrean sluices to discharge into the Thames but gave up after 40 minutes hanging on.
I can't think of anything else to do but householders along the New River should evaluate the situation and perhaps remove valuables from basements / ground floors.
Tags for Forum Posts: new river, new river water level
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by L F T Snowflake on
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The 'canal' is the New River, but of course, it is not new nor a river. It was actually a stream for supplying drinking water to London.
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Permalink Reply by John McMullan on
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I have just spoken to the manager at the West Reservoir. He says that they are a sealed unit and that Thames Water can give them water under a contractual arrangement but they do not just pump it out as they fancy/need to.
So did this water just go to waste and not into a reservoir? Would that not make it hard to prosecute someone for using a hosepipe if they're just letting God's bounty slip through their fingers?
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Permalink Reply by John D on
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Interesting that Canadian Michael didn't see any rise where he lives. Yesterday, before the water started to rise, I did see a couple of vehicles drive down to the barrier at about Allison Rd. Maybe they adjusted sluices to pen water up north of there to control the level further on. If so they were cutting it fine
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Permalink Reply by Rachel Warren on
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We live next to the river on Warham Rd. After being warned of the flood alert last night I had a look and the water level looked like it normally does. Today it looks a little higher, but not near the top of the metal barrier that runs along the edge. I guess we are on higher ground....
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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on
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John, I emailed Cllr Nilgun Canver about your post here; and yesterday got the email below from Andrew Meek, Haringey's Emergency Planning Manager.
It gives some reassurance. Although I don't understand why your eyewitness account is not given due weight in addition to the observations of the officer making the assessment. I wonder, did anyone actually ask you for exact location where you saw the water "almost at the top of the banks".
It's probably my ignorance but I don't follow what difference it makes that the New River is an "artificial channel". It seems to me that any channel - artificial or not- can fill to the brim and then overflow in particular circumstances. And that includes a culvert or a street drain into which rainwater flows. Heavy continuous rain for several days saturating the ground (so rainwater runs off); raised water levels; plus a leak from a watermain seem a possible sequence of events.
(Tottenham Hale ward councillor)
----- Original Message -----Sent:Wednesday, June 13, 2012 9:57 AMSubject: Resident posted infomation about rising levels of the New RiverDear Councillors
I can confirm that we received a call from a resident concerned about a flood risk from the New River at the junction of Hampden Road and Wightman Road. An officer was sent to make an assessment, and arrived within an hour of the initial report. At that point, the New River appeared to be well within its banks and there was no sign of any flood risk.
The only issue noted was a water main burst on Hampden Road, which was discharging a significant amount of water into the gullies in Wightman Road. This was reported to Thames Water in the normal way.
A follow up visit took place at 0900 the following morning which confirmed there was no change in the situation.
The New River is not a river in the sense of a natural watercourse. It is an artificial channel supplying water to reservoirs in London. As such it is not considered to be likely to cause flooding.
Kind regards
Andrew Meek
Haringey Council
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Well I don't understand that Alan: the water level was right up to the top of the banks on the railway side of the New River and was actually lapping over the foot of the Thames Water crane which is used to lift their weed cutting boat in and out. Certainly not " well within its banks " . I wish the officer concerned had called me and I would have come down to explain my concern.
Now that I have had a look, I see that Thames Water have put in a temporary sluice or dam just before the New River dives under Wightman Rd and the effect of this is to raise the water level upstream, possibly with the intention of holding back and storing the increased rainfall.
What is really annoying is the mention of the flooding on Hampden Rd. This has been going on for at least six months and has been reported to the Council. It is NOT a burst water main: it appears after rainfall and dries up again after a few days. A burst main would not dry up. It seems to me that the rainwater drain is blocked on Hampden Rd between the bridge over the New River and the junction with Wightman Rd.and that rainwater builds up in the drains above that blockage and emerges from the gully gratings. I think the best solution would be to get the Mosque to complain.
I would be happy were you to forward this to Mr Meek.
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Thanks for getting back so quickly, John. I completely agree that at least a phonecall would've been sensible. Your original post was at 10:33pm and Mr Meek says the officer arrived "within an hour". So perhaps she or he felt it was too late to call you? Though l imagine most people wouldn't mind a reassuring phonecall if they're worried about flood risk.
About the flooding on Hampden Road, getting more people to send in more complaints shouldn't be needed. In fact, it's what John Seddon calls "Failure Demand" - demand caused by a failure to do something or do something right for the service user / customer. It's a negative feedback loop which wastes everyone's time and money.
What was needed - or perhaps still is needed - is for the agencies involved (Thames Water, Network Rail, Haringey Council; and perhaps the Environment Agency?) to get to the bottom of what's happening with the water leak. Then agreeing what needs doing and who is going to do it (and pay). It's possible that all these questions have clear unequivocal answers.
Cllr David Schmitz was following this up and he may know. Can I suggest you have a chat with him.
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Ater a few days without rain, the flooding on Hampden has dried up. Will be interesting to see if it comes back after the next rainy spell.
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OK. After a few dry days the flooding dried up. After last night's rain the flooding is back.
How is this a burst water main ?
Why do the Council officials assume the general pulic are idiots ?
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John, why must attempts at solving problems turn into blame sessions?
Andrew Meek is the Council's officer in charge of dealing with emergencies. In my experience he does his job extremely well; is very helpful; and certainly doesn't treat people as idiots. As I read Mr Meek's note to Nilgun Canver he was simply reporting that at the time you reported a rising water level in the New River there was a "water main burst on Hampden Road, which was discharging a significant amount of water into the gullies in Wightman Road". He did not say this was the cause. Nor that this was the cause of the ongoing leak in Hampden Road.
Have you contacted Cllr David Schmitz as I suggested? He too is helpful and, in my experience, takes the job of ward councillor very seriously.
(Tottenham Hale ward councillor)
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Alan
" At the time I reported a rising water level.. " there was NO water main burst. There has not been a water main burst over the last six months : there has been a blocked rainwater drain over the last six months which leads to flooding. I have said this several times but even you confuse the issue by referring to the blocked drain as " to get to the bottom of what's happening with the water leak ".
Andrew Meek may well be the Council Officer in charge of emergencies but the blocked drain is not an emergency and I doubt therefore if the blocked drain is his responsibility.
I have not yet contacted Councillor Schmitz as there is a procedure for alerting the Council to problems of this nature and I have used it. I received an acknowledgement on 7th June as follows
" We will inspect the problem within two working days and decide how urgently it needs to be fixed.
We will contact you again by email with the result of our inspection. If our contractor needs to carry out remedial works, we will let you know when the works have been completed to our satisfaction. "Two weeks later, I have not received the promised email, nor have I received a reply to my follow-up email asking what was the result of the inspection.
If this has turned into a blame session it is because the Council is not following its own procedures.
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