As you can see the river level is getting near the L of Bristol on the Iron Bridge.
Thanks to Sean for sending this update on the level of the River Thames at 2:30pm on 6th Jan.
Kevin, AKA “Paringa” Barge, currently stuck in the floods, says the The Boat has at last floated itself off its position in the field below Abingdon lock and was last seen going under the bridge. It stopped for a while at the bottom of the island but is now on it’s way further down. Whereabouts unknown.
The Ock Mill Flood Barrier, installed on Christmas Eve, is now saturated on both sides. I was told by one local resident that when the water gets through the barrier it has nowhere to run away.
The Marina Park has been an island for quite a few days now but is getting increasingly further from the mainland.
The Ock Valley Walk has been cordoned off – as has The Margaret Brown Gardens.
The houses on the Ladygrove Estate were flooded in 2007 but that was an extraordinary summer event when the water rose very suddenly. The current Environment Agency Map shows risks of flooding. A few houses appear to be high (greater than 1 in 30 years), and some are medium (between 1 in 30 and 1 in 100 years) and more are low (between 1 in hundred and 1 in a thousand years).
The River Thames has such a wide floodplain that it has not caused much Abingdon flooding, in recent times, but there is still a lot more water to come down, and more rain is forecast. So I would expect there are people watching the water level again.
The floodplain over the other side of the River Thames is still under a lot of water, as is the seat in memory of Michael Hambleton (Minister of Abingdon Baptist Church 1991 to 2000).
It was raining again this morning and most of my pictures got blurred and are unusable.
Last week I picked up, from Oxfam, a Guide to Abingdon … “Written by Friends and Servants of Abingdon.” The guide has no date, but can be dated … “Work is in progress on the construction of a new Assembly Hall for the town. This hall, which will seat 500 people, will be linked to the Guildhall, and should be completed during 1965.”
The 1965 Official Guide to Abingdon was priced at 2/6 and is a delight to read … “A busy town on one bank; cattle, knee-deep in water by the other! That is the contrast offered at Abingdon, and many an attractive picture it provides, especially on a Sunday when the picture is augmented by the sweet sound of bells borne across the quiet water.”
MG Cars gathered on the Market Place this morning from about 9:30.
There was also a Bull Nose Morris.
They met for the 20th annual Boxing Day Run organised by the Abingdon MG Works Centre.
They then set off round the one way system and across Abingdon Bridge into South Oxfordshire.
The River Thames is running fairly high so some walks are only passable with wellington boots and care.
The Ock Valley Walk is now flooded near the town centre. Comments yesterday from the Ladygrove Estate said “Floodwater from the Ock lapping at the back fences of Orpwood Way.”