Boscastle 2004 flood, causes and effects


	Boscastle 2004 flood, causes and effects
	Causes Over 60mm of rainfall fell in two hours (a month's rainfall) The ground was already saturated due to two weeks of high rainfall. The drainage basin has many steep slopes, causing rapid surface run off. Boscastle is at the confluence of three rivers - Valency, Jordan and Paradise. A large quantity of water all arrived within a short space of time causing the banks to overflow. The flooding coincided with a high tide, making the impact worse as the river could not empty into the sea as easily.	Effects Homes, businesses and cars belonging to over 1000 people were swept away. Around 75 cars and 6 buildings were washed into the sea. Income from tourism was lost. This had an impact on livelihoods and the local economy. There were vast numbers of subsequent insurance claims. No lives were lost, partly due to the rapid response of the emergency services. In conjunction with the Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI), a fleet of seven Royal Navy and RAF helicopters rescued 150 people.
	Overall summary

Over 60mm of rainfall fell in two hours (a month's rainfall)
The ground was already saturated due to two weeks of high rainfall.
The drainage basin has many steep slopes, causing rapid surface run off.
Boscastle is at the confluence of three rivers - Valency, Jordan and Paradise. A large quantity of water all arrived within a short space of time causing the banks to overflow.
The flooding coincided with a high tide, making the impact worse as the river could not empty into the sea as easily.

Homes, businesses and cars belonging to over 1000 people were swept away.
Around 75 cars and 6 buildings were washed into the sea.
Income from tourism was lost. This had an impact on livelihoods and the local economy.
There were vast numbers of subsequent insurance claims.
No lives were lost, partly due to the rapid response of the emergency services. In conjunction with the Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI), a fleet of seven Royal Navy and RAF helicopters rescued 150 people.

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