“The community spirit is always amazing”: Rothbury councillor says residents have coped well with bad weather

Workers trying to clear standing water on A697 near Powburn

Residents of Northumberland have seen their fair share of rainfall over the last few days, as the Northumberland Gazette reported that the organisers of the Glanton Show had to cancel at the last minute.

From power cuts, to traffic chaos, the region has been hit hard following the Met Office declaring a yellow warning.

Coun for Rothbury, Steven Bridgett, has been out with community members and the Northumbrian Water workforce, monitoring water levels and helping residents who have been disrupted by the flooding.

He said: “We’ve had quite significant rain fall this weekend, which has caused problems with a lot of the burns in and around the Coquet valley.

“Those burns have then emptied into the Coquet. They’ve caused problems in the areas where those burns go through smaller communities up the valleys. They’ve then emptied into the Coquet.

“The Coquet rose last night, the environment agency deployed the floor barriers and the floor defences, as you come into Rothbury. They took them down when the river went back into normal levels.”

He was out in Rothbury delivering water to elderly residents who could not make the journey themselves. He was quick to praise the support the community has shown during the bad weather, saying: “The community spirit is always amazing around here. It’s absolutely second to none.

“This isn’t our first major incident, as I’m sure people know, we’re well rehearsed and you can’t fault the community spirit around here.”