NO FURTHER FLOODING A BETTER OUTLOOK

Evening Star, Issue 19760, 10 January 1928, Page 6

NO FURTHER FLOODING

A BETTER OUTLOOK

POSITION REVIEWED (British Official News.) Press Association—By Wireless—Copyrfgat. • RUGBY, January 9. (Received January 10, at noon.) This afternoon high tide in the Thames was anxiously awaited by the riverside inhabitants, and the barricades were keenly watched by the officials and workmen. The tide, however, caused no further flooding. Water trickled through the barricades at Lambeth, but these were quickly strengthened.

No further overflow is expected if rain and wind hold off, and the river should subside normally after to-mor-row.

a Lord Desborough (chairman of the Thames Conservancy Board) reviewed the flood situation at a meeting of the board to-day. Ho attributed Friday’s disastrous floods, in which fourteen lives were lost, to an inrush of water from the North Sea, “ amounting almost to a tidal bore.” He said that the wet period preceding Christmas Day resulted in the flow of the river rising from its maximum capacity of 4,500,000,000 to ' 9,000,000,000 gallons. That was a very serious amount of water. Then came the heavy snowfall of Christmas. If the snow had thawed quickly those 9,000,000,000 gallons would have been increased to such an extent that there would have been a record flood. Fortunately the snow did not thaw until tho 9,000,000,000 had fallen to 4,600,000,000. In his opinion the volume of water in the river had very little to do with the disaster.

Dealing with the question of measures to prevent a repetition of such occurrences, Lord Desborough said he thought the remedy was to build a barrage across the estuary of the Thames from Tilbury to Gravesend with locks in it. This would produce a beautiful reach of water from Tilbury to Teddington, always clean and deep, and usable for the whole length.

It is stated that the Government may -set up a Commission of inquiry into the causes of the disaster if the various river and municipal authorities concerned desire such an investigation.

ONE BIG RELIEF FUND

LONDON, January 9. (Received January 10, at 1.15 p.m.)

The Lord Mayor of Loudon conferred with the mayors of all the affected districts, and decided on a co-operative relief fund, to which cash donations are pouring in, as well as largo quantities of bedding and clothing. The Bishop of London, speaking at Bournemouth, said that if the dismal folly, wickedness, and danger of basement dwellings was shown by their being swept away the calamity had not been in vain.