“This latest flooding underlines the committee’s concerns about the resources available for floods which are becoming more frequent,” she said.
Meg Hillier, the chair of the committee and a London MP, told the Guardian the weekend’s floods highlighted the government’s inaction. Parliament’s public accounts committee warned earlier this year that the government was not doing enough to prevent damage from flooding, and said councils and local authorities needed much more help, including more cash. “It is difficult to help people prepare for surface water flooding if they don’t know they are at risk, and if they don’t receive precise warnings of the likely impacts when heavy rain is forecast.” The current accuracy of surface water flood maps reflects an investment choice and not what is possible with the state-of-the-art science,” she said. “The surface water flood hazard maps for the UK have not been improved since 2013. She said there was a lack even of basic data, caused by a refusal to invest in more precise research. This makes it difficult for the public to have a good understanding of their own risk and what can be done.” Lead local flood authorities take responsibility for managing it, the Environment Agency for mapping it, and the Met Office for providing early warning. Liz Stephens, associate professor of climate resilience at Reading University, said: “The UK still has a complicated set of roles and responsibilities for surface water flooding risk. One of the problems is that responsibility for flood protection in the UK is split among many authorities, with little central oversight. It is not acceptable to keep paving over the land and expect the public to deal with the water when it comes into their homes.” Neumann said: “Planning and development need to consider flood risk from all sources – river, groundwater and flash floods – and adapt accordingly. A lack of green spaces and vegetation, and the paving over of many areas without heed to flood risk, has compounded the problem in many cities, including London, and also needs to be addressed, experts warned.
But the government has also been warned frequently that measures to cope with the impacts of extreme weather are urgently needed, and that the UK has been falling behind on such adaptive measures.Īdapting to the impacts will require a thorough overhaul of the UK’s infrastructure, encompassing not only drainage and water supply systems, and transport, to ensure they are not overwhelmed, as many in London were at the weekend, but also energy supply and communications networks.īuildings will need to be redesigned and public areas revamped to include better drainage channels and storm drains, while more innovative approaches could include porous pavements. The Washington County Sheriff’s Office said investigators are working with Zion Park Rangers and a medical examiner to determine the cause of death.Climate policy in the UK has focused on cutting greenhouse gas emissions, which is a primary concern, to reduce the human impact on the climate and ensure global heating does not reach catastrophic levels.
She was found days later about 6 river miles south of the Narrows, according to park officials. Later that evening, Agnihotri was reported missing. That day, torrential rains brought flash floods to the Narrows area, where there were reports of rushing waters sweeping multiple hikers off their feet near the Temple of Sinawava, according to the park service.Īfter several rescues, park officials said they believed all missing hikers had been found and accounted for by Friday afternoon – including one person who had been swept downstream several hundred yards. Rescue crews are searching for a hiker in Utah after flash floodingĪgnihotri was reported missing Friday evening after she didn’t return from a trip in the Narrows. (Photo by George Frey/Getty Images) George Frey/Getty Images Four hikers died and three are missing after a flash flood yesterday that also killed several woman and children in two vans that were swept away by the flood waters. SPRINGDALE, UT - SEPTEMBER 15: Cars enter Zion's National Park on Septemin Springdale, Utah.
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