Ford talk aim after worries over damage
TALKS may be held to discuss the future of an trouble-hit Weardale river crossing.Durham County Council highway engineers are seeking a meeting with Stanhope Parish Council and the Environment Agency to address continuing problems with Stanhope Ford.
The ford closed for the winter last October for the first time to avoid any repeat of incidents where emergency services, including rescue helicopters, have had to be called out to rescue drivers who become stuck in the ford after ignoring flood conditions, water depth gauges and warning signs.
But on April 1, just hours after re-opening for the summer, fire and rescue crews were called out after two off-duty soldiers became trapped in their car at the ford after trying to drive across fast-flowing water.
The crossing was immediately closed on a temporary basis and has remained closed since. A further 21-day temporary closure notice came into effect on Friday, May 16, to allow the County Council to consider a range of options about its immediate future. Its highway engineers are not only concerned that a build-up of silt and gravel downstream from the ford is affecting river levels at the ford itself, but have now found that its carriageway is in need of repair.
Earlier this month the Council asked the Environment Agency to consider the removal of gravel which they believed had raised water levels at the ford and increased its potential to flood. But the EA has said the amount of gravel needed to be removed to reduce the flood risk would be “huge” – up to 7,000 cubic metres, - and was “not a sustainable long-term solution”.
Durham County Council’s Acting Director of Environment Roger Elphick said:“ We are currently carrying out a detailed survey of the carriageway of the ford to determine the extent to which repairs are necessary and how best they might be carried out.
“Depending on what we find and how we decide to address it, it may need to be closed even longer. and the Environment Agency’s response about the removal of gravel adds to the difficulties we face.
“In view of these factors affecting the ford and increasing the likelihood of it flooding even more often, we shall be seeking further discussions with the Parish Council and the Environment Agency to discuss its future use.”
