A good friend of many here and Moderator named Szaxx is in dire straits at the moment. Literally.
Through the recent deluge of flooding in the UK, their Dam has a breach, that could possibly cause the entire Dam to collapse and flood the town of Whaley Bridge and the surrounding area. The town has been evacuated. Szaxx lives just outside of the evacuation zone, (barely), but is still affected by the possible 1.5 million tons of water that may soon destroy everything in his area. The article says the actual Reservoir holds 300 million tons of water. When Szaxx PMed me, he could hear the Chinooks right out his window.
My request is for us all here to keep Szaxx, his family, friends and his entire community in our thoughts and prayers.
You can read more about it here:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/amp/uk-england-derbyshire-49213042
Szaxx's latest PM to me today told me that the engineers are attempting to repair it, but it will take awhile. He also said it was "touch and go" right now and that some of their two foot wide streams have grown to 10 foot wide with heavy erosion. Unfortunately, he also said more rain is on the way. Lastly, he voiced his concern on whether the actual repair would be successful or not.
You can find out more about this dire situation with a simple google search on "Toddybrook Dam or Whaley Bridge". It's such a beautiful community too.
Thank You!
Update. Here is the latest on the situation, as of 2 hours ago.
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-derbyshire-49222956
Oh how scary! my thoughts are with the engenders hoping they will find a way to secure the Dam.
Szaxx, stay safe!
Stay safe Szaxx. Thoughts and energy for the crew working on the dam. Your family and community are in my prayers.
Send some good wishes to the workers and engineers working on the dam to succeed.
For those of us that are concerned, here is the latest news on the problem. It seems they have another issue as well, 22 people that were to return to pick up more provisions, have opted to ignore the warnings and stayed in their homes. The problem being, this could put the Rescuers in peril, if they indeed had to go in and rescue them. I see both sides of the coin though.
https://www.bbc.com/news/live/uk-england-derbyshire-49228103
The weather is terrible there. In my country it is heat-heat-raining-heat-raining at summer (in general) bah, this is terrible... I guess in Europe also, in general. Let's hope that situation will improve soon Szaxx.
Thank you all for your concerns at this time.
It's a problem in capable hands and applies to all dams worldwide. I hope no devastation ensues here and elsewhere as this scare is being dealt with professionally. The weather on the other hand has a different view and recently the waters deposited have been extreme.
Whaley Bridge is a nice area as the news has reported and many walks are available to all visitors. Where I live is over a mile downstream but it has its limits with excess waters flowing in the river Goyt. The Torrs (Google images for the Torrs Riverside Park), is a deep and narrow passage with bridges over 150 feet higher than the river. However, the authorities have evacuated a few people even this high up. I'm higher still and relatively safe.
The images will show how nice it is here and give an insight to where the 1.5 million tons of water with its debri has to flow taking its toll on the natural beauty. Other walks are already impassable and the whole area is inside the exclusion zone. A little extra rain is fine normally, a months worth in a day has caused issues. A dam being breached is unthinkable. Many towns downstream have been flooded due to this extra rainfall last week. The dam breach would be devastating.
My thoughts go to the workers repairing the damage. They are in the line of fire if the integrity fails. A sadness that I am not letting occur as best I can. With your energies, this failure isn't an option.
Thank you all again.
Update,
Some residents have been allowed home and the reason is the water level present can't affect them. This includes many downstream towns and the roads barring a few are now open. The coming weekend storms are the only obstacle that present a possible problem for those families still ousted. The water level is lower than expected as the recent storms torrents missed the area.
It is news that a long term redevelopment of the whole dam and reservoir will be initiated creating an up to date rebuild that conforms to regulations. This will ensure future issues from climatic change have been dealt with correctly.
The long term conditions and future safety aspects addressed, completion of this work will ensure Whaley Bridge and the river Goyt with its downstream locales are not to expect this predicament reoccurring.
The downstream areas that flood are subject to their respective local authorities care which will be addressed in Parliament.
The immediate danger has been greatly reduced and the upcoming storms will direct further action as necessary.
Thank you all for your thoughts and consideration