Flood Threat Causes ‘Devastating’ Impact, According to Traders

The potential for flooding has had a “devastating” effect on business during what is typically the busiest period of the year, according to a gallery and shop proprietor. Alison Bartram, owner of Heart Gallery located on Market Street in Hebden Bridge, closed her establishment prematurely on Saturday when the town’s flood siren activated. She spent the evening relocating her inventory of artwork, jewellery, and ceramics to secure locations. Storm Bert initially delivered heavy snowfall in the morning; however, as precipitation shifted to rain, the snow melted, causing the River Calder’s water level to increase. Ms Bartram stated that her shop fortunately avoided flooding, but visitors avoided the area because of alerts indicating the town was in danger. Josh Fenton-Glynn, the Labour MP for the Calder Valley, commented: “It is a couple of weeks before Christmas and a time when our retail businesses are trying to do their most profit and this really hits them.” On Saturday, flood sirens were activated across Calderdale, and river levels near Todmorden surpassed 7.9ft (2.4m). This measurement was only 1ft (34cm) below the levels recorded during the Boxing Day floods of 2015. Ms Bartram remarked: “All the businesses dread days like this, and the alarm going, the river rising.” She continued: “But we do all have flood plans and in Heart Gallery we have our SOS – Save Our Stock – which is a shelf really high up.” “We have to get all our original artwork, our prints, textiles, ceramics, our jewellery, onto that shelf and as you can imagine that takes a long time. “As much as we can get onto that flood shelf goes up on that shelf. We have big ladders, we have plastic boxes, it was all hands on deck.” The proprietor of the gallery indicated she remained at the premises until approximately 21:00 GMT, returning at 07:00 GMT on Sunday to prepare for opening. She stated: “We were in at 7am trying to get everything down from the shelves for people to come in again but they didn’t come, because on the news, Hebden Bridge had been flooded.” “It had a huge impact not just on the shops and the pubs, but in the restaurants and the cafes, they all reported dips in trade and that is not what we needed right now.” Fenton-Glynn remarked that residents have been awaiting action regarding the region’s flood risk for an excessive period. He added: “It is almost a decade since the 2015 flood and we are still waiting for a flood scheme in Hebden Bridge.” “We have two communities awaiting that, and every time we get heavy rain they are hugely anxious and they are understandably getting frustrated.” The Calderdale Flood Recovery and Resilience Programme, established in 2012, is led by Calderdale Council in collaboration with the Environment Agency, Canal and River Trust, and local community organizations. This collective has obtained £133m designated for enhancing defenses and implementing natural flood management strategies. In the previous year, the West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) disclosed that communities across West Yorkshire would receive £22m in funding aimed at safeguarding them from future flooding incidents. These initiatives encompass: WYCA, the Environment Agency, and Calderdale Council have been contacted for their statements.