Flooding in an MEDC: Boscastle August 2004

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Background - what was the date of the flooding?
the flood occurred on Monday 16th august 2004
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Background - what two rivers does Boscastle stand on the confluence of?
the river Jordan and the River valency, which means there is a lot of water passing through the village.
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Background - where did the flooding occur?
the flooding took place in Boscastle a village in cornwall.
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Background - what type of flash occurred in Boscastle and what does it mean?
Boscastle suffered from a flash flood, which is a sudden flood which is usually caused by heavy rain
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Causes - how much rain fell in one hour?
89mm of rain fell in one hour
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Causes - how much rain fell in 4 hours?
500mm of rain fell in 4 hours
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Causes - how many million litres fell in 2 hours?
1400 million litres of rain fell in 2 hours
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Causes - what caused blockages in the rivers flow, especially under bridges?
because the river is narrow and the bridges low tree got stuck in the channel damming up the river even more.
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Causes - what type of rock is Bodmin Moor (the upland area where the upper part of the river valency is) and what does this mean?
Bodmin moor is made of impermeable rock so the water can not soak into the ground. this increases surface runoff and the amount of water flowing into the river channel which can cause it to burst its banks.
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Causes - what shape is the river valency and what effect does this have on its likelyhood to flood?
the river valency is a very steep sided, narrow river this means it is more likely to flood as there is more surface runoff putting pressure on the river channel
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Causes - what development had recently been done in the village reducing the rivers capacity?
A new road and car park built in the village had reduced the rivers capacity
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Causes - what type of land was Boscastle built on?
Boscastle was built on a flood plain.
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Effects - how many buildings were flood damaged?
50 buildings were flood damaged
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Effects - how many business properties were destroyed?
25 business properties were destroyed
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Effects - how many people died in the floods?
no one died in the floods.
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Effects - other than the flood why did the businesses in Boscatle suffer?
Businesses suffered from not only the flood but also from the village being closed to tourists for the summer for safety reasons.
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Effects - what important tourist attraction was destroyed?
the Visitor centre was destroyed.
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Effects - what happened to the local wildlife?
the local habitats were destroyed and there was pollution due to debris and cars including car fuel being washed out to sea.
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Management - what have landowners agreed to do to help reduce the flow of water into the river?
landowners have agreed to increase vegetation cover e.g. plants and trees to increase interception of rain water.
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Management - how much did insurance companies pay out for the rpair of properties?
Insurance companies paid out £20 million for the repair of flood damaged properties.
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Management - what type of flood defence has been put in place to help reduce the risk of another flash flood?
a new flood defence wall has been built.
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Management - by how many centimetres has the river bed been lowered by, and what does this mean?
the river bed has been lowered by 75cm which means it can hold a larger volume of water.
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Management - why was the car park raised above flood levels?
the car park was raised to above flood levels to prevent cars being carried through the village by the water causing even more damage.
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Management - other than the river being deepened what else has been done to the rive channel?
the river channel has been widened by the car park.
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Management - what was the main help that rescue services sent?
rescue services sent
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Management - what did Prince Charles do to help and why did he do this?
Prince Charles made a large donation to help fund the rebuild of parts of Boscastle because he is the duke of Cornwall and felt obliged to do so.
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Management - what rescue services where sent and how many people where saved?
Rescue helicopters, the fire services and lifeboats were sent and rescued around 150 people who then received medical assistance.
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

Background - what two rivers does Boscastle stand on the confluence of?

Back

the river Jordan and the River valency, which means there is a lot of water passing through the village.

Card 3

Front

Background - where did the flooding occur?

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

Background - what type of flash occurred in Boscastle and what does it mean?

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

Causes - how much rain fell in one hour?

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
View more cards

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