Agenda item

– report of Mr Mike Hill, CabinetMember forCommunityServices and CorporateDirector Customerand Communities)

(1)     Cabinet receiveda reportproviding an updateon the responseby KCCand partners tothestormsand floodingexperienced overthe Christmasand NewYear period.

(2)     TheCabinetMember,Mr Hillintroduced thereport andinparticularreferredtothe following:

i.        That althoughthepoliticalandmediainteresthad focusedon particularareas ofthe county,many areashadbeenflooded.  28,500propertieshad been withoutpower and19,000calls hadbeenreceived bythe KCCcontact centreand1500to KCCHighways departmentregarding fallentrees, in addition134 rescues hadbeenperformedby the KentFire and Rescue Authority.

ii.    Thatthe circumstances hadbeenexceptional andchallenging combiningnot only rain and floods buthigh winds.  In addition the emergency was prolongedand fellover the Christmas period.

iii.   Some issueshad alreadyemerged and wouldbe consideredfurtherforthe future:

a.    Communicationsbetween individualsand agencieshad beendifficult.  Therefore staffhadbeen needed ‘on the ground’to communicate safety messages

b.    Additionalstaffhad been needed,particularlyin the contactcentre, howeversome staffhad been workingverylonghours that wouldnot havebeen sustainableforany longera periodoftime

c.    Thehandoverbetween theemergencyand recoverystages was difficultto co-ordinategiventhe ongoingbadweather and needed to be tightlymanagedtobe effective

d.    Communitywardens and otherstaffworking out inaffected communitieshadbeeninvaluable incommunicatingmessagesand supportingthe county’svulnerable residents.

e.    Thatthenewly conceivedKentSupportand Assistance Service providedfood,clothingand some furnitureto peoplein considerable distressand had beenwell received

iv    Thata policechairedmeetingoftheKent ResilienceForumwould be held as partofthe debriefingprocess and furtherreport to cabinetin thespring,

v.   Heconcludedby expressinghis pridein theworkofKC officersand partners inmanagingwhat hadbeen adifficultand drawnout emergency

(3)     Stuart Beaumont, Head ofCommunitySafety and EmergencyPlanning,supported Mr Hill’s commentsand assuredCabinetthatthe debriefingswould be thorough and wouldfocuson the issuesraisedby residents,partners and officersand wouldreport back to Cabinetin thefuture.

(4)     Steve Terry,EmergencyPlanning Manager,remindedCabinetthatKCC hadplayed a significantrole insaving and protectinglives,including duringrescue operations whichhad beenco-ordinatedby variouspartners(including volunteers)and thatthe joint natureofthe workhad been crucialto its success.  He alsoremindedmembers thatalthoughthe riskto lifehad reducedtheemergency wasnot yet over.

(5)     TheLeaderendorsedthe comments receivedand confirmed that furtherwork would be carriedout toassess theactionstakenby allparties duringthe emergency,in particular, he hoped that EnvironmentAgencywould considerthe timelinessof warningsfor residents,and tothat end requestedthattheybe invited asa guest of the FloodRisk ManagementCommittee to discusssuch issues.He alsorequested thata furtherissuebediscussed bythe Committee;flood defencesand the possibility,withhelp fromcentralgovernment,oflongerterm pre-emptivemeasures beingtaken to avert floods.

(6)     Finally, he addressedthe issueofthe BellwinSchemeto which localauthoritiescould applyforcompensationfromcentralgovernmentwhere spendingon emergencies exceeded3.3 million.He assuredcabinetthat the governmentwas supportiveof effortsto make gooddamagefromthe stormsand tothat end the Council had alreadyput a further2.5 millioninto potholerepair acrossthe County,but it wasnot expected that thiswouldbe the totalofcosts incurred.

(7)     TheCabinetMemberforSocial Careand Public Health,Mr Gibbens,concurredwith praise alreadyreceived forvoluntarysector supportduring the emergencyand further praised the staffwithin hisown directoratefor the workthey had done toprotect Kent’smost vulnerableresidents duringthe emergency. Heurged the Corporate DirectorforFamiliesand Social Careto writeto thosevoluntary organisationsto thank them forthehelp receivedby KCC.

(8)     Respondingto a questionfromtheLeader,Mr Beaumontreported that Parish Council’swould be consultedas partofthe multi-agencydebrief,as wouldthe EnvironmentAgency.

(9)     TheCabinetMemberforTransportand Environment,Mr Brazierspoke to the item; he reportedthe contributionofthe Highwaysteamas follows:

•        A redalert hadbeen put in placeon the22 Decemberand remained overChristmas and manyadditionalstaffhad beenbrought in.

•        Over2000 treeshad been clearedin the space of 2 daysand mainroads cleared relativelyquickly.Howevercountry roadswere moredifficultto clear, sometaking up to a week,owing to the lackofdrainageoptionsfor the water.

•        Thebanon vans to householdwaste disposalunits hadbeen temporarily liftedandthis had successfullyhelped residentswho hadbeenfloodedto cleardamagedpropertyquicklyand easily.

•        Repairto potholeswas ongoingbut the cost couldnot yet be estimated.

(10)   Mr Bird,local memberforMaidstoneCentral,had requestedand been granted permissionto speak atthe meetingby theChairman.Mr Birdmadethe following pointsas a residentaffectedby theflood:

•        Thatthemajorityof residentsofYalding weregratefulfor the supportthat they hadreceived fromthe various agenciesinvolved.

•        Thattheflood in2000had been relativelywell managed,but onthis occasion that had not been the case.  Nosevere floodwarning was issuedto residentsofYalding and this leadto difficultiesin convincing someresidentsto evacuate.

•        Thatin thefuturesystems ofcommunicationshouldbe improved, includingsystems thatdo not relyon telephoneor electronic communication.

•        Finallyhe suggested thatpre-emptivemeasuresbe taken toavert floodingandargued thatflood preventionwasless costlythanflooding damage,loss and inabilityof residentsto getto work.

(11)   TheCabinetMemberforCorporateand DemocraticServices, MrGary Cooke, extendedsympathyto allofthose affected.  Hereportedthat KCCpremiseshad also beenfloodedincludingrecord storageareas.He thanked anumberofstaffwho had workedon Boxing Dayin orderto raise boxesofvaluable personaldataabove the floodline.

(12)   Director ofPublicHealth,Mrs Peachey,reported that CommunityResilience during theflood had beenparticularlystrong and workwould be done to capture thebest elementsofthe workbetweenthe emergency planningteamand thelocal communitiesin order to buildon it forthefuture.

(13)   TheCabinetMemberforCommercialandTradedServices, MrBryanSweetland urgedofficersand Membersto ensurethat residentinputwas soughtduringany debriefperiod.He commendedthe KCCHighwaysdepartmentand the Community Wardensfortheirwork withresidents.

(14)   TheLeaderthanked those officers and volunteerswho had workedthrough Christmasto aidduringthe flood andasked that afull reportbe consideredby Cabinet inthe future whendebriefwork wascompleteand conclusionsand recommendationsforthe futurecouldbe made.

(15)   It was RESOLVEDthat thereport benoted and thata fullreport bebrought and consideredin thespring.