Great Yarmouth residents get better flood protection
Anthony CarrollA �4.7m sewer upgrade in an area of Great Yarmouth badly affected by major flash floods has been unveiled.Anthony Carroll
A �4.7m sewer upgrade in an area of Great Yarmouth badly affected by major flash floods has been unveiled.
A new pumping station, kilometre of sewer and underground storage tank means that the Northgate Street area will have three times the level of protection of normal sewers.
Yesterday's completion will come as a relief to residents of the area as it has been subject to several torrential flash floods as the Victorian sewer system failed to cope with large surges of water.
In 1999, flash floods saw children take to the water in a canoe along Northgate Street and John Vale the landlord of the Sportsman's Arms vainly tried to keep out water with his own mini-flood defence barriers.
Then in September 2006 parts of the road were covered in 3ft of rainwater and homes were evacuated as 27mm of rain fell in just 24 hours.
Tony Wright, MP for Great Yarmouth joined officials from Anglian Water at Northgate Street and said: 'After many years of suffering the devastating effects of flooding in Yarmouth, I am really pleased that Anglian Water has responded by making a significant investment.
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'It has no doubt brought peace of mind to the residents and businesses alike in the Northgate Street area.'
Work on the new sewer system started in September 2008 and saw giant tunnel machines install the 1.5m diameter sewers which replaced the aging Victorian system.
The new sewer runs from the junction of Ormond Road and then goes up Northgate Street until in discharges in the new 850 cubic metre tank underneath Northgate St Andrews's School car park.
It continues up to Lawn Avenue and Tar Works Road where it discharges into an existing pumping station.
The new system has been tested successfully over the last six months.
Andrew Mackintosh, for Anglian Water, said: 'We are grateful to residents for their patience and understanding during construction and we hope residents feel more secure knowing that the area now has three times the level of protection of normal sewers.'
