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| Image from Google |
If you don't live in the UK then you probably don't know about all of the awful flooding across the country since around Boxing Day; certain areas of the country will always be more prone to flooding than others but important questions have been raised - can more be done to prevent or reduce flooding in future? Is anyone to blame? Has enough been done to help those affected? Is enough money being devoted to flood prevention and warning?
The town in which my grandad lives was affected on Boxing Day by the flooding and the council weeks before had opened up the river running under the town which I think was part of a re-design and re-development of the town centre but in hindsight it may have made the flooding worse! The images of the town on social media were shocking, I've never seen the area like that before and the damage caused was quite far reaching. Also the photos on social media of Hebden Bridge, not far from were my grandad and other members of my family live, was even worse as well as Leeds were my sister is living for university. Thankfully my grandad's home wasn't affected but so many businesses and other properties in the area were, particularly the town centre and it doesn't seem like that much is being done and it seems that there wasn't much of a warning beforehand either, in my opinion.
I think more needs to be done in terms of prevention and also warning so that people living in those areas to be affected can prepare their homes as the damage from the flooding must be awful to witness and to try and repair as well as pay for, particularly just after christmas. There are ways to help reduce the effects, the Home Owners Alliance suggest air brick covers and stocking up on sandbags just in case as well as excess damage prevention suggestions such as moving plug sockets higher, fitting water resistant skirting boards, sealing exterior walls and protecting the doors and windows. Flood gates or floor barriers may be useful too; also the government suggests making a flood plan although a better warning system would be needed for a flood plan to work!
One point that is useful from not only a design perspective but protection perspective too is smart storage (a point raised in my previous post about interior design trends). I'm all about interesting and unique storage solutions which is something I've tried to incorporate into my office as it has just been redecorated with simplistic and easy to move units and copper wire wall storage. I think wall storage, whether it's wire racks, floating shelves, boxed wall shelving and more are perfect ways to display valuable and interesting items as well as storing them in a safer place in the home. This is a collaborative post.
The images of the flooding have been awful and so many people and businesses are still being affected by the damage caused by the flooding and I hope everyone gets the help and support they need.
Were you affected by the Boxing Day flooding? Do you think enough has been done or could the flooding have been reduced?
