(a) Flood Wardens : Cark Lewis (Tonbridge Flood Wardens Group) and Tim Norton (Environment Agency)
(b) Kent Search and Rescue: Stuart Kenny (Water Lead Officer)
(c) Kent 4 x 4: Steve Short (Chairman)
Minutes:
(1) The Chairman welcomed the four speakers to the meeting. He informed the Committee that he had attended a two day exercise arranged by the Environment Agency, informed by the winter 2013/14 storms. This had been at Endeavour House in Addington. He had requested that all Members of the Committee be invited to attend such events in the future as it would be of great interest to observe flooding preparedness and response activities at first hand.
(2) Tim Norton (Flood Resilience Team Leader, Environment Agency) gave a presentation entitled “Community Resilience in Kent: Flood Wardens.” He said that the 2013/14 floods had convinced him that action on Flood Wardens was necessary for three reasons. The first of these had been that the response of certain communities to the flooding had not been as good as it could have been. The second was the political imperative, as there had been a widespread view that something positive needed to be done. Thirdly, there was an identified need for all agencies involved to protect their reputations. Although they had worked well in 2013/14, the publicity had often been unfairly negative. Reputational damage needed to be avoided because it could become a factor hindering the effectiveness of future flood response. The solution lay in the development of a relationship of trust within vulnerable communities.
(3) Mr Norton went on to say that work had been undertaken to identify what communities and individuals could do to manage flood risk better, by responding more quickly and efficiently. Volunteers had been given basic training to enable them to understand who did what during a flooding incident, how to stay safe during a flood and where the information would be coming from. This had been complemented by the development of a Flood Warden Handbook. This described their roles and potential tasks and was accompanied by a flood warden pack in the form of a rucksack containing basic kit. The work stream which sat alongside the basic training was community level emergency planning.
(4) Mr Norton showed a map which identified the areas where new flood wardens had been trained. They were scattered around the County with the highest number in Faversham and along the Stour and the Nailbourne rivers.
(5) As the programme developed, the EA had become aware of two areas which were potential “deal breakers.” The first of these was the question of who should have responsibility for the Flood Wardens. The new model identified the top tier as the Multi Agency Command and Control structure during an incident, below them were the various Tactical Co-ordinating Groups. The reporting line to the Flood Wardens themselves would go through the District and Borough Councils.
(6) The second potential deal breaker was the question of Insurance. This would be delivered through the Parish Councils or the Boroughs/Districts. All Flood Wardens were now covered, provided that they had been properly trained and were carrying out their functions in the correct manner. It was recommended that each insuring authority should carry out an annual check to ensure that the volunteer insurance cover was still there.
(7) Mr Norton identified the things that were going well. There had been a rapid response to the need for action in support of communities and volunteers; there was a mutual understanding amongst the partners which were developing Flood Warden training; sufficient funding had been secured for the purchase of basic equipment for Flood Wardens; a good level of understanding had been developed for people involved with flood wardens; Flood Wardens were now integrated into the long term strategy for building resilient communities; and nearly 200 Flood Wardens had now been through the initial training.
(8) Mr Norton then said that there were a number of questions which were still being considered or worked through. it would be necessary to provide Flood Wardens with a basic role profile which would vary for each community. It needed to be recognised that the initial set up could be resource intensive but that it represented a good investment. Ongoing investment of resources would be required. The question of Insurance should be addressed from the onset. There was also a discussion which was still to be concluded as to whether a model should be developed for each individual community or whether it should be more generic and therefore more consistent. It was likely that the answer would take the form of a happy medium. It was also a challenge when there were various agencies involved in co-ordinating a strategic response that was community focussed.
(9) Mr Norton concluded his presentation by considering the road ahead. He said that thought still needed to be given to working out how to sustain the progress made. There was a risk that if no flooding occurred for a number of years, the number of Flood Wardens could decline. The Environment Agency was therefore arranging seminars and other events in order to maintain momentum. Another matter that needed to be addressed was that the EA was not resourced to work with each community where a flood warden had been trained. It was therefore going to be a matter of prioritising which communities to work with, as well as considering how it should be resourced. Some high risk communities still did not have any Flood Wardens and consideration would need to be given to working with them. The Districts and Boroughs would need to carry out exercises to ensure that they were aware of the Flood Wardens in their areas of responsibility and that they knew how to contact them. Finally, the work done in Kent needed to be shared with others, whilst the County itself would also need to integrate best practice developed in other authorities.
(10) The Chairman said that it would be a great challenge to maintain enthusiasm amongst volunteers if there were no major incidents. He suggested that Members of the Committee could be invited to attend future Flood Warden events so that they could learn from the session whilst underlining the great appreciation that the Committee placed on the work that they were prepared to do.
(11) Mrs Brown said that in Yalding, the 33 Flood Wardens kept in touch with one another through social events that were arranged every two months. It was essential to do so rather than assume that once the Flood Wardens had been trained there was nothing further that needed to be done until a flooding event occurred.
(12) Carl Lewis identified himself as a Tonbridge Flood Warden as well as one of the two Area Flood Warden Co-Ordinators. He said that there had been no Flood Wardens in Tonbridge before the 2013/14 flooding event. Following the event and after meetings involving Sir John Stanley, MP and the Borough Council it had been decided to urgently set out to recruit people. This had been achieved through the contributions of Tom Tugendhat, MP and advertisements in the newspapers.
(13) Mr Lewis said that communication was key. This could vary from door knocking to electronic communication and from advertising EA roadshows. This enabled Flood Wardens to tell the community that their role was not limited to emergency events but that they were there to support the community throughout the entire year.
(14) Dr Eddy asked what happened in those areas where there were only one or two wardens or when they were down to half strength when a flooding event occurred. Mr Lewis replied that even teams such as his own with 12 members did not have as many Wardens as they would like. His team had a primary First Aider as well as a back-up. Whenever he personally was on holiday, there was always someone identified as cover. Difficulties were being experienced in getting new people to join the team. This was partly because those most at risk saw often saw their own properties as taking priority whilst those not in those areas were not engaged. Tonbridge and Malling BC would shortly be starting a new recruitment campaign which would include social media. Other charity groups such as the Rotary Club were also being approached to see whether they could offer support and/or become involved. They were also aiming to recruit Incident Volunteers for those who were unable to commit to becoming Flood Wardens.
(15) Mr Hills noted that there were very few Flood Wardens in some high risk areas such as Romney Marsh (where there was only one). He asked whether those Parishes with greater numbers of Flood Wardens could allocate one of them to be accountable to each Parish Council. This would enable them to disseminate information from the EA to the Parish Council.
(16) The Chairman commented that it was important for Parish Councils to maintain momentum by regularly inviting local Flood Wardens and First Responders amongst others to their meetings.
(17) Mrs Brown said that it was a good idea for Parish Councils to work together. She added that areas such as her parish of Yalding had three rivers, each of which required a different response at different times. Nevertheless, it was important for Parishes to co-ordinate the way in which information would be disseminated to all the Flood Wardens themselves. A very good example of the need for this had occurred when a power cut had taken place at the same time as a flood.
(18) Mr Stuart Kenny (Water Lead Officer, Kent Search and Rescue) said that his organisation currently had some 130 members. 2015 had been a quieter year than usual. They had received about 60 call outs in respect of vulnerable or missing persons notified by Kent Police during the year. This contrasted with the overall figure of 86 in 2014. In 2007, this figure had been 25, indicating that operational capacity was increasing from year to year. This increase resulted from ever-improving relations with Kent Police as well as a growing awareness of what Kent Search and Rescue could do. The Police Search Advisers were generally (but not always) aware of Kent Search and Rescue’s presence and capacity.
(19) Much of Kent Search and Rescue’s work involved physically searching for people, both in daylight and darkness. Over the years they had developed a number of teams. They had a strong Dog Team and Mountain Bike Teams. They also had developed an excellent team of qualified Bank Searchers, who were able to carry out water-based searches for people who had fallen into the river. These Bank Searchers were not permitted to put themselves at risk. Their task was to locate people and identify the correct resource to recover them safely. There were now 36 Bank Searcher teams in the UK.
(20) Kent Search and Rescue had also started a Canoe and Kayak Team (two kayaks and two canoes and 15 trained members). This Team had participated in the recent tragic search at Leybourne Lake, using all its resources to carry out bank searches, complementing the rubber inflatables and divers used by Kent Fire. The Canoe and Kayak Team could only locate people on the water surface and was not equipped or trained to search underwater. They were able to call in sonar equipment from other authorities in support of their role.
(21) Kent Search and Rescue had also put together a resource of Flood Rescue Technicians. This consisted of 25 technicians, divided into five teams, whose qualification was underwritten by DEFRA. They were able to effect rescue using a sled or inflatable in water up to 1 metre deep, travelling up to 1 metre per second. This meant that they could not deploy in circumstances such as had been seen in Yalding where the water speed had reached 20 knots.
(22) Mr Kenny said that Kent Search and Rescue had deployed during the last flood in Yalding. They had been deployed during the day to knock on doors in order to encourage people to move. By 9pm, the water levels were up to their knees and ankles, which meant that they themselves were at risk.
(23) Mr (Steve Short (Chair, South East 4x4 Response) said that his organisation had 80 members in Kent. They were all equipped with 4 wheel drives and one third of them were Water Qualified. They had been formed some ten years earlier and had developed considerable professionalism and expertise over this time.
(24) South East 4x4 Response had deployed during the 2013/14 floods in Yalding and Tonbridge. They were well aware of the strong possibility that their help might be needed again. Its members carried out various tasks such as sandbagging, evacuation, carrying food, water and medical supplies to affected places, and supporting the Community Wardens.
(25) In response to a question from Mr Bowles, Mr Short said that all vehicles registered with South East 4x4 Response had to have yellow beacons flashing on their roofs. They bore logos so that the Emergency Services knew who they were. Each member also had to wear a high viz jacket.
(26) Mr Short explained that the cost of the work of the organisation was high. If a journey was classed as humanitarian, it would be paid for by KCC. The members’ time was freely given in a voluntary capacity.
(27) South East 4x4 Response could be contacted in an emergency or if people wanted to join either through their website or the Kent Resilience Team.
(28) Mr Kenny said that Kent Search and Rescue and South East 4x4 Response worked together on a regular basis. The latter organisation often transported his members and emergency equipment to wherever they needed to go. They would help get people who needed the emergency services to get to the main highway, as ambulances were not allowed to leave tarmac. In addition, they always carried Kent Search and Rescue logos when working in support of them.
(29) The Chairman suggested that the next meeting should be preceded by a visit to Kent Air Ambulance, to which all the presenting organisations could be invited to display their equipment. Mrs Brown offered The Lees at Yalding as an alternative venue if Kent Air Ambulance could not host it. The next meeting of the Committee could also be held there.
(30) RESOLVED that all four presenters be thanked for their presentation as well as for their organisations’ enthusiasm and commitment to Flood Resilience in Kent.