Avoiding the floods this Christmas

A multi-agency Strategic Coordination Group has been set up in order to combat an extended spell of consistent rainfall which is expected to fall in Cumbria over the Christmas period.
 
Whilst the rainfall is not likely to be near the amount that fell during Storm Desmond, it will again be falling on already saturated ground and is likely to cause surface water flooding on roads across the county.Keep up-to-date with the weather at www.metoffice.gov.uk  and the latest flood situation at www.gov.uk/check-if-youre-at-risk-of-flooding  or follow @EnvAgency and #floodaware on Twitter for the latest updates.

Visit the Traffic Link map at www.cumbria.police.uk/traffic-link-map  to keep up to date with the latest situation on the roads.

For updates on which roads and bridges are closed please visit www.cumbria.gov.uk/floods2015/roadclosures.asp. 
Should your property be affected by a flood please be extremely careful and do not touch any electrical equipment or power cables. To report a power cut or damage to the power network contact Electricity North West on 0800 195 4141, follow @ElectricityNW or visit www.electricitynorthwest.co.uk

Have you lost some keys?

Dr John Wood of Brough Fold, Oxenholme Lane found keys in Prizet Road on Sunday afternoon. He has put a poster in the post office and has the keys at home. If you think they might be yours, please ring him on 01539 728313.

Singing and services in St. Mark's Church this Christmas

Tuesday 22nd December, 6.30pm. Carol Singing on Natland Village Green, with Kendal Concert Band.

Christmas Eve, 4.00pm. Christingle Service. 11.30pm Midnight Communion.

Christmas Day, 9.00am. Holy Communion (a quiet start to the day). 
10.15am. Family Service (you might like to bring one of your presents to show everyone).
.

Cumbria Highways notification about road and bridge closures

David Peters, Natland Parish Council's 'Highwayman'  writes:
The two emergency road closures of particular relevance to Natland are Hawes Bridge (U5625 Hawes Lane) and The Helm (U5630) ... Understandably there is no indication yet of when the roads might be reopened.  The text explains that the 21-day orders may be extended for a further 21 days, after which a "temporary" order must be made which can apply for 18 months before renewal.

By mid-afternoon on Saturday 5 December the river had reached the tops of both Hawes Bridge arches and was beginning to cross the road on the Helsington side (right bank).  The water rose further overnight and washed away the first 10 metres of the downstream parapet.  Meanwhile, on three sections of the road over The Helm ground water pressure had lifted the carriageway surfacing which consequently broke up when it was trafficked.  The damage was aggravated on the Sunday by some drivers seeking to avoid the flooded A65 Burton Road by Helm Sink before 'road closed' signs were in place.  More drivers chose the Natland option causing periods of gridlock and damaging verges in the village.

The 'Natland diversion' worked better on Monday 14 December, following the serious road traffic accident on the A65, because PCSOs were available to manage the traffic.

This is the second time in recent memory that the Helm road has failed in this way and consideration may need to be given to whether it is worth maintaining as a through route.  Natland Parish Council made such representations to the Highway Authority on the previous occasion, but to no avail.  The adequacy/standard of maintenance of the culvert under the A65 which drains Helm Sink may also have to be raised.

Festive spirit at December WI

Members were in Christmas mode for the November meeting despite the awful weather and thirty of us listened with interest to the talk (with musical interludes) by Bob Pickersgill on ‘The History of The Saxophone’. There was also a gift-wrapping competition and, naturally enough, mulled wine and mince pies to round off the evening. You can read the full report here.

The next meeting, on 20 January, will hear Jeff Woods talk on ‘This and That’. Visitors welcome.

Can you help make the Natland Christmas tree secure?

All those motorists diverted through Natland this afternoon will have had the benefit of seeing our village Christmas tree which has been erected on the Green today.

Thanks to Joan Calvert for donating the tree and to Andrew, Martin and David for putting it up.

Unfortunately the mounting pipe is cracked so a strong gale such as we have had in recent weeks could result in an uncontrollable list. If any one has the ability to fix a metal ring round the plastic pipe to strengthen it please volunteer and have the satisfaction of seeing a permanent vertical tree.

The tree looks a bit bare in the daylight so please feel free to hang your spare decorations on it.

Carols around the tree will take place on Tuesday 22 December at 6.30pm (if wet in church).

Happy Christmas, everyone.

Flood Update fom Openreach

From: Cumbria Chamber <cumbriachamberofcommerce@cumbriachamber.co.uk>

Date: 8 December 2015 at 13:19:38 GMT
Subject: Flood update from Openreach 

"Openreach have been working through the weekend to respond to the current flooding.

...We have a number of our Superfast Broadband cabinets affected by flooding or power outages and two of our depots were flooded (Carlisle and Kendal). We are working hard to restore these as power comes back on, those that have been submerged will need extensive work so may take some time.

Engineers are being deployed to all accessible affected areas today including teams going door to door in Cockermouth, we will do similar as other areas become accessible.

Businesses relocating or without service need to contact their Communications Provider, they have escalation routes and regular calls with us. If however telecommunications is a barrier to businesses relocating we need to know specific examples with as much information as possible, including order numbers, I will then look at how best we can help make it as quick and seamless as possible."...

If you have any problems with your Communications Provider, please do let us know so we can escalate these for you - please give as much information as you can.

We'll be regularly updating our websites www.cumbriachamber.co.uk and www.cumbriagrowthhub.co.uk with relevant information and resources so please do keep an eye out - the information will mainly be for local businesses but if you feel it would be useful to share more widely then please do so.  Please also follow us at @cumbriachamber

Lesley Robinson Start-Up and Enterprise Manager

Ski touring talk next Saturday

Come and hear Lakeland Cross Country Ski Club member and experienced ski tourer, Tom Higgs, in the village hall at 7.30pm this Saturday (12 December) talk on the theme of: Ski touring and other experiences – don't be misled! Admission free with refreshments available at a small extra cost.

Places for the talk are limited, so if you intend to come please leave a message on the home page message board of the Lakeland Cross Country Ski Club website www.lakelandxcski.org.uk giving your name and the number of people interested. 

Flood Damage

Water came into the cellar of the church up to a height of 6 feet, submerging the brand new central heating boilers. The water is subsiding quickly. Temporary heating is going to be set up in church until the situation is sorted. The Coffee Morning next Saturday will still go ahead; the vestry heating is still working well.

Hawes Bridge closed

Not surprisingly, due to flooding, Hawes Bridge is now closed.

Christmas Coffee Morning at the Church

Parish Council November minutes

At the November meeting two new members were co-opted to fill the casual vacancies.  Councillors welcomed John Fisher, who lives on Abbey Drive, and newcomer to Natland, Ian Ellison who has moved into Dalton Lodge, Oxenholme Lane.

This year’s Christmas tree on the green has been kindly donated to the church by Cllr Joan Lind.  Looking ahead, the PCC has asked the Parish Council for help with the cost of buying a tree for subsequent years, and this will be considered at the January meeting.

The PCC is increasingly concerned about the maintenance of the churchyard which is becoming more onerous for a small band of volunteers, and has asked the council for support. The PCC agreed to obtain quotations from contractors for the work so that the council can consider making a contribution towards the maintenance of this important parish facility.

At the next meeting (25 January) the precept (the funding that the parish council receives from the District Council through the Council Tax) for 2016/17 will be decided.The minutes of the November parish council meeting are now available to read or download here.

November in Natland

                  WEATHER STATISTICS                                   NOVEMBER

                                                                                     2015                                  2014
Temperature at 8 am                                                    6.9c                                    6.8c
Minimum Temperature                                                 5.2c                                    5.5c
Maximum Temperature                                                9.1c                                    8.6c
                                                       mm       in            mm     in
Rainfall                                          289      11.6          111     4.4
The second highest November rainfall in ten years, exceeded only by 2009 when we had 365 mm. There were only 4 days when no rain fell! Frequent gales were also a feature of the month but it was generally mild with the exception around 20th-23rd when overnight temperatures were around zero.
John Dobson.