Storm Darragh floods to be raised at Shropshire Council meeting

This comes after many Shrewsbury residents were impacted by widespread flooding, as Storm Darragh tore across the county over the weekend. The storm brought chaos, with trees falling onto cars and power lines, transport links cut off, and homes, gardens, and farms left underwater. 

Councillor Alex Wagner's question praises the collective efforts of Shropshire Council, the emergency services, and community groups, who worked tirelessly to respond to the crisis under difficult conditions. However, he also argues that Shropshire Council needs to learn lessons from previous storms, and address long-standing issues which have been raised year after year - and over the weekend, led to real issues.

Alex pointed to Crescent Lane in Shrewsbury, which he had visited during the floods, as a clear example of where action has been lacking. After flooding caused by Storm Henk over 18 months ago, residents were promised that drains would be cleared to improve the efficiency of flood pumps. 

The promises made by Shropshire Council to Quarry residents remain unfulfilled, leading to greater damage during Storm Darragh as clogged drains made it impossible for flood pumps to work efficiently.

Councillor Alex Wagner said:

"The emergency services, council workers, and many others have done incredible work over the last few days to deal with the impact of Storm Darragh in our communities.

"Unfortunately, in some cases, it seems like a lack of forward planning by the County Council has made the job of dealing with flooding even harder. Cutbacks to hedge and tree maintenance and huge amounts of development have put enormous pressure on our drainage system, which has not been matched by efforts to keep drains clean.

"After Storm Henk over 18 months ago, residents on Crescent Lane by the Quarry were promised that their drains would be cleared. They weren't, and as a result their flood pumps couldn't operate efficiently this week - leading to even worse flooding. It shouldn't take a major incident like Storm Darragh for this to be sorted out.

"I've put in an Urgent Question to the Full Council meeting on Thursday to ask what we are doing to futureproof for flooding and extreme weather, why this job wasn't done properly in the first place, and what will now be done to protect homes and businesses."

Siobhan Connor, Chair of Shrewsbury Flooding Action Group, posted on X to offer her support for Alex's efforts, saying that 'we need the leaves clearing, we need the drains to function' in order for flood pumps to work efficiently and protect homes.