Flood alarm system protects property
A village in Nottinghamshire has installed a river monitoring system that automatically issues SMS text message alarms to help residents implement flood protection. OTT Hydrometry’s managing director, Simon Wills, explains
The village of Oxton has a long history of flood- related problems caused in large part by the local geography which, during times of high rainfall, fun- nels water from land and road surfaces and a lake into a stream known locally as the Oxton Dumble. The Dumble passes through the village and eventu- ally flows into the Dover Beck.
The construction of a flood relief channel in 1984 was designed to take much of this excess water around the village perimeter and whilst this has undoubtedly been beneficial, the channel needs to be regularly maintained and kept clear of bushes, trees and other debris if it is to cope with more extreme rainfall events.
Subscription to the Environment Agency’s (EA) flood warning system can provide timely alerts to those in flood-susceptible areas. However, occa- sionally even the flood relief channel in Oxton cannot cope and in both 2007 and 2009 flood- ing caused devastation to a number of residents’ homes and local businesses
Some 14 homes were damaged in 2007 and even as recently as December 2012 and January 2013, properties narrowly escaped flooding although roads in the village became impassable and water was brought up to doorsteps. Flooding in Oxton is therefore related to the river levels and rainfall recorded by the EA, but because of local conditions, flooding can occur in Oxton when the
and building of temporary flood defences, includ- ing Aqua-Sacs, to prevent the rising waters from reaching residents’ homes.
In December last year, the level monitor raised the alarm three times, which initiated the successful deployment of the village flood plan and prevented any significant damage.
The Orpheus Mini installed in Oxton
EA has not issued a warning. Recognising a need to be able to monitor water level in the village stream with an ability to raise an alarm when certain conditions arise, Oxton’s Parish Council obtained a Orpheus Mini monitor from manufacturer OTT Hydrometry. The instru- ment has been installed in the water course and now monitors and logs water temperature and level continuously.
An alarm level has been set and when this is reached, the instrument automatically issues an alarm text message to members of Oxton’s volun- teer emergency response flood team and to those residents whose properties are most susceptible to flooding.
After receiving an alert, the flood team assem- bles at its resilience store to begin the deployment
Parish councillor Ian Kilpatrick said, “The moni- toring system is designed to provide sufficient advance notice to enable the village’s emergency response flood team to try to protect the properties that are most at risk.
“As a result of recent events, the residents of Oxton are more sensitive to water levels than most. However, we cannot watch the stream every day of the year and certainly not at night, so a continuous automatic monitor is the ideal solution. “The instrument has raised several flood alerts since its installation in July 2012 and thereby helped us to prevent similar disasters to those experienced in 2009, 2007 and earlier.”
Many more communities suffer from a similar susceptibility and would therefore benefit from this technology.
This does not in any way replace the flood warn- ings that are issued by the Environment Agency, but it does enable local people to build a reliable low-cost warning system that is dedicated to their specific needs.
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