The recent storms have had a huge effect on communities around the UK, so the IHBC has gathered a small snapshot of news from different Branch areas, with some examples of the effects of the weather on historic buildings and townscapes, together with links to advice from heritage agencies on dealing with flooding.
IHBC Director Seán O’Reilly said: ‘While of course safety always must come first in conservation, as well as in any of these unfortunate and often tragic circumstances, our historic environment also has taken a sever battering. It has even, on occasion, succumbed to the forces of nature, as with the collapses of Birnbeck Pier, Tadcaster Bridge, and the remarkable Waterside Inn in Summerseat, Greater Manchester.’
‘These are inevitable realities of how our historic places and fabric changes, as any conservation specialist knows. But that’s no reason to say that we can’t do what we should to protect, rescue and conserve what we can, and do all that to standards that are appropriate to the circumstances. So for Abergeldie Castle in Scotland, for example, we can see how footage from a drone can help scope out the situation and inform what might be done to secure the future of this Category A listed home that’s teetering on the edge of a collapsing bank.’
‘Recent weeks have been very challenging for the communities affected, but that should only reinforce how much effort we must make to ensure that these special places are, where they can be, returned to their former glories!’
- Historic gardens at Plas Cadnant damaged by floods
- Birnbeck pier collapses
- Tadcaster bridge collapses causing the town to be split in two
- Riverbank collapse in river Dee affecting the stability of a Category A listed 16th century townhouse Article 1 & Article 2
- York city centre underwater
- 200 year old Waterside inn in Summerseat, Manchester collapses
- Gable of pub associated with Robert Burns collapses
- Cockermouth town centre underwater for the second time in six years
- Damage to Leeds Industrial museum and Thwaite Mill
- Historic cast iron footbridge in Deeside bends
- Damage to Lamington viaduct near Lockerbie, causes closure of part of the West Coast main train line
On a lighter note, the flooding has inspired some interesting humour, see Twitter
HE advice on historic buildings and flooding
IHBC NewsBlogs on floods
