The island is bracing itself for more flooding over the weekend.
On January 3 and 6, many coastal areas were affected and Castletown and Ramsey were particularly badly hit.
The Isle of Man Met Office has today (Thursday) issued weather warnings to highlight the potential for flooding around the times of the spring tides tomorrow (Friday) and Saturday.
Many coastal areas and harbours will be affected, particularly on Saturday, as high tides combine with gale force winds and deepening low pressure to create significant storm surges.
It is predicted that waves as high as four metres will break over promenade walls at Douglas, Castletown, Ramsey, Laxey and Gansey, resulting in substantial amounts of water, stones and other debris being deposited on the roads.
An amber warning is in place for Friday.
The high tide at 11.32am is predicted to reach a height of 7.81 metres and will be accompanied by south to southeasterly winds of 35 to 40mph. This will lead to overtopping in exposed coastal locations and present a risk of minor flooding around inner harbour areas, including Back Hope Street in Castletown, the Tongue in Douglas and Mezeron Corner and West Quay in Ramsey.
Heavy rain is also forecast throughout most of Friday, which could lead to localised flooding, swollen rivers and standing water on roads.
Early indications are that the impact of tidal flooding will be much greater on Saturday.
A red warning is likely to be issued by the Met Office and the situation will be carefully monitored as the weather pattern develops.
Saturday will witness a high tide of about 8.1 to 8.3 metres at 12.20pm, along with southwesterly gales gusting to 55 to 60mph and pressure falling to about 968mb. The resulting storm surge will lead to large waves breaking over sea defences and promenades in Douglas, Castletown, Ramsey, Laxey and Gansey.
Subject to adjustments as more up-to-date information becomes available, the inner harbour areas likely to be affected include: Back Hope Street, Hope Street, Douglas Street, Springfield Terrace, Athol Terrace, Milner Terrace and Victoria Road in Castletown; North Quay, parts of South Quay and Leigh Terrace in Douglas; the Quayside, Market Square and sections of Parliament Street in Ramsey.
Current estimates point to tidal flooding at a higher level to that experienced on Monday, January 6.
The government has issued a press statement to say that police, fire service, ambulance service, Civil Defence, coastguards, Department of Infrastructure and Water and Sewerage Authority are working together to try to mitigate potential damage.
It adds: ‘People in exposed coastal areas are encouraged to take steps to protect their properties and vehicles from the storms and flooding, and to help elderly or vulnerable members of the community wherever possible.
‘Lessons have been learnt from the severe weather events at the beginning of January and a robust response has been planned.’
Officers from the Department of Infrastructure will be helping to place more than 20,000 sandbags at key locations around the island. This is in addition to the thousands of sandbags still in place from the tidal flooding experienced on January 3 and 6.’
One-tonne sandbags and other flood prevention measures will also be deployed in Castletown, Ramsey and Laxey to try to seal off roads and protect homes and shops.
Further contingency measures have again been put in place to deal with the conditions and the following roads will be closed between 10am and 6pm on Friday:
Castletown – The Promenade, Douglas Street and Bridge Street from its junction with College Green to Bank Street
Shore Road, Gansey – From Fishers Hill to its junction with Castletown Road, Rushen
Shore Road Underway – Shore Road to the Promenade
Laxey – The Promenade and Tent Road
Douglas – The Promenade from Broadway to Port Jack
Ramsey – Queen’s Promenade from its junction with Queen’s Drive East to Dale Street, Mooragh Promenade from its junction with Old River Road to Vollan Crescent
The following roads will be closed between 10am and 6pm on Saturday, February 1:
Castletown – The Promenade, Douglas Street and Bridge Street from its junction with College Green to Bank Street, the Quayside – Bank Street, Victoria Road to Alexander Road (roundabout), Back Hope Street, Hope Street, Athol Terrace
Shore Road, Gansey – From Fishers Hill to its junction with Castletown Road, Rushen
Shore Road Underway – Shore Road to the Promenade
Laxey – The Promenade and Tent Road. Shore Road will close at 8am to enable flood prevention measures to be put in place. The one-way system will be revoked to provide access for residents
Douglas – The Promenade and walkway from Broadway to Port Jack, Leigh Terrace – Castletown Road from its junction with Bridge Road to the Nunnery entrance, North Quay – Quine’s Corner to Parade Street
Ramsey - Queen’s Promenade from its junction with Queen’s Drive East to Dale Street, Mooragh Promenade from its junction with Old River Road to Vollan Crescent, East Quay – West Quay to Neptune Street, West Quay – Bowring Road to East Quay, Parliament Street from its junction with Parliament Square to, and including, Market Hill
West Street, East Street and Christian Street from the junction with West Quay to Parliament Street will close at 8am to enable flood prevention measures to be put in place
Peel – Mill Road – Station Place to East Quay
Roads will be closed to vehicles and pedestrians. The police will be in position at strategic areas and will adopt a commonsense approach once the storm surges start to abate. It is expected that pedestrian access will be permitted on a phased basis as conditions improve, but some roads may stay closed to traffic beyond 6pm to allow the clear-up operation to take place.
Motorists are requested to plan their journeys, drive to the conditions and take heed of road closures.
Diversions will be in place on bus routes and updates will be provided by Bus Vannin.
Public safety is the primary concern during the severe weather and people are asked to keep clear of flood waters, as there may be unseen dangers such as open manhole covers. It is also possible that raw sewerage could be discharged into the water.
Extreme caution is also advised for those watching the storms, as some people put themselves at risk during the extreme weather earlier this month. The advice from the emergency services is to stay well clear from areas where waves are breaking.
Motorists should park vehicles away from promenades and harbours to avoid possible damage from flying debris and flood waters.
The emergency services will respond to any incident where people are in danger and can be contacted on 999.
For general help and support with flooding problems or storm damage, where human life is not at risk, the public are asked to call the Department of Infrastructure’s Ellerslie Control on 850000.
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