New bid launched to tackle flooding in Malton and Norton (From Gazette & Herald)

New bid launched to tackle flooding in Malton and Norton

12:35pm Wednesday 23rd January 2013 in News By David Jeffels

NEW action to help combat future flooding in Norton and Malton is being investigated by Yorkshire Water after company bosses met MP Anne McIntosh last week.

She, together with Malton’s mayor, Coun Jason Fitzgerald-Smith and Norton County Councillor Stephen Shaw, met two Yorkshire Water officials on a fact-finding meeting in the two towns.

They visited Castlegate in Malton, and Church Street in Norton – scenes of the worst of the flooding crisis in recent weeks – and the home of Nikki and Karon Hind which has been flooded six times in recent months.

Later, Ms McIntosh said she was to hold a round-the-table meeting at her Old Malton office with officials from Yorkshire Water, the fire and rescue service, police, the Environment Agency, Highways Agency, Ryedale District Council and North Yorkshire County Council to discuss future prevention measures.

The meeting, which will be held in the next few weeks, is likely to include a report of the county council’s own findings into the situation which resulted in 24 pumps being brought in to tackle the floods in November and again at Christmas.

Ms McIntosh said: “It was a very useful meeting.

“We have established that the flood gates at Castlegate were breached which is why the Hind’s home was flooded.”

She added that she had asked Yorkshire Water to investigate the possibility of piping being put underground because there was a problem with drainage.

However, said Ms McIntosh she was anxious that planned future development in Malton and Norton should not go-ahead until the drainage problems were fully resolved.

Coun Shaw said: “We discussed with Yorkshire Water what progress was being made and assessed the information from the November and December flooding to ascertain what lessons could be learned.

“It was agreed by everyone that in any future flooding, the response action would be quicker.”

However, he added, while a relatively small number of properties in Norton had been flooded, 90 per cent of people in the town had been affected by the resultant traffic congestion.

Coun Shaw said the flooding incidents had cost each of the agencies involved thousands of pounds.

“The question now is that if money is to be spent on infrastructure work, who is going to pay,” he said.

Coun Shaw added that putting drain and pipe works underground in Church Street was seen by Yorkshire Water is a feasible option.

“We all hope that any solutions will result in our communities suffering less from flooding,” he said.

Coun Fitzgerald-Smith said he too had been encouraged by the meeting with Yorkshire Water.

“They are keen to see work done to improve the situation and to enhance their reputation as a result of the pumping operation breaking down,” he said.

“We need to maximise the expertise of all the agencies to ensure the safety of householders.”