The River Ock and the associated Sandford Brook again burst their banks. Flooding was avoided in many homes in South Abingdon in Oxfordshire, England, thanks to the natural floodplains. Although it was a worrying time for Abingdon residents living close to the Ock, the Tesco superstore on Marcham Road was most seriously affected. It closed when the entire car park and access roads were flooded. Future floods will also affect the Premier Inn and could cause its evacuation.
The River Ock flood waters have gone down. The first three pictures picture were on Sunday.
Here is the scene today on the Ock Valley Walk, Monday.
There is some damage to pathways and trees.
Malcolm Moor of the South Abingdon Floodplain Action Group wrote to me to say, ‘Since the Abingdon Tesco Superstore opened in 1982 it has been one of Tesco’s most lucrative stores nationally. As well as contributing to the local economy, the massive footprint of the store and its car park in the floodplain of the River Ock have contributed to the severity of flooding in Abingdon on a number of occasions, so perhaps it is now time for Tesco to make a significant financial contribution to the Environment Agency to help in implementing effective flood alleviation measures for the town that has contributed so much to Tesco’s profits. To worsen the Abingdon flood situation, the Premier Inn has now also been built in the Ock floodplain, so a contribution to flood mitigation measures from the Whitbread and Hilton Groups would also be welcome to demonstrate their civic responsibility.’
