Shrewsbury Floods 2000
Causes
- Due to heavy rainfall in autumn of 2000, the river severn flooded several times- this caused problems for places such as Shrewsbury.

- Development spread onto the floodplain meaning houses and roads are inevitably at
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risk from flooding and there is a faster run off. Residential area of Longden Coleham developed on low lying floodplain.
Flood peak reached 5.25 metres on 1st November 2000. During normal conditions the river in Shrewsbury flows at 50 cubic metres per second, during flood flowed at 250 cubic metres per second, x9 greater.
Prone to flooding due to a large number of tributaries between source to Shrewsbury, meaning more water in the channel. Lies on impermeable rock.

Impacts
- Water breached the 2.9 metres bankfull level which meant flooding was extensive.
- At times the town was effectively closed due to disruption of communications. Welsh

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bridge an English bridge were closed for periods and flooding at the neck of the meander closed the road and disrupted rail travel, economic and social impacts.
Properties forced to be abandoned, as floodwaters rose. Lower ground of Wakeman school was ruined after gallons of water swept through lower ground floor.
Extensive damage to 220 houses in Shrewsbury. car parks submerged, and sports grounds and parks badly affected.
Shopping centres cut off, Boots estimated a loss of £250,000 in sales, £975,000 in sales lost from M&S- £30,000 worth of food chucked away.
400 properties flooded by Reabrook, a small tributary that joins the River Severn along with a large discharge.
Costs £7-8million, emotional stress, inconvenience suffered by residents of Shrewsbury.

Management
- Environment Agency secured £6million to help clear up and manage future floods in shrewsbury - During flood events, the River Severn flow is some nine times greater than under

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normal conditions. Dredging the river could create a channel deep enough to contain the water. However, because of the flow is so enormous, the riverbed would have to be excavated by a depth of some 6-8 metres. To do this, rock blasting of the bed would be necessary. Construction of walls and embankments within the town to prevent flooding. They would require deep foundations to prevent groundwater seeping under the defences. There are four main areas of flooding in Shrewsbury located on either side of the Welsh and
English Bridges. Defences would be constructed in three year long phases to reduce disruption to the town.
The cost of providing such defences to resist a 1 in a 100 year flood is estimated to be in the region of £8 million.

Summary
In Autumn of 2000, Shrewsbury was hit by 500mm of rainfall. The persistent rainfall over
November meant the the soil had become saturated and could not hold anymore water.
This meant it ran off rapidly into the river channel causing the Severn to burst its banks and therefore flood. Lag time of the drainage basin was decreased also due to the impermeable rock and development of housing within the river basin. The flood caused severe damage to 220 houses in Shrewsbury. This meant that insurance companies had to pay out compensation but many families lost personal items they could not replace.
Commercial services were disrupted within shrewsbury as transport links were flooded, affecting trade. Marks and Spencer’s reported a lost £1m in sales. In the short term, emergency were quick to react moving people and animals to safety. The Met Office also issued flood warnings to warn people. £6million was contributed to the clean up operation.
Since the flood effective flood management systems have been erected such as a flood wall to try and reduce the effects of flooding. As they were zero deaths, In the short term the flood was managed effectively as it prevented any deaths. The flood was also a catalyst for the local authorities to act and protect themselves against future flooding events.