Proceedings of the Castle Aching Parish Council, 1905

[Nearholmer]

That photo is amazing/appalling/intriguing. I’ve been trying to work out what the topography of the area must be to cause that affect. Is it the edge of a plateau?

 

Whatever it is, those who live there have my sympathy - one sort of doesn’t expect a super-civilised place like Germany to get whacked by natural disasters, ditto Canada - let’s hope we all learn from it.

[Compound2632]

Sorry, I'm a bit behind. Apropos of three-wheelers, I did read of one County Council in the early days of vehicle licencing, that decided it would be a good idea to issue registrations with odd numbers to vehicles with an odd number of wheels, and even numbers to vehicles with an even number of wheels. As the even-wheelers got up towards AB* 9998, the unwisdom of this began to be felt. Registrations to any vehicle were then issued as odd numbers from AB 9999 working downwards. Thus AB 2467 could be a much younger vehicle than AB 2468.

 

* I can't recall which county it was, so the registration letters AB simply stand for whatever the county town was.

[Annie]

7 hours ago, webbcompound said:

Of course all that fossil fuel we have been burning hasn't done the world any good. People hear "flooding" and think, that is terrible but at least it can be cleared up. Not if your entire landscape washes away though, like here in Europe, now.. When it happens in North Norfolk Castle Aching might be the only reminder of what was once there (even though strictly speaking it wasn't)

That image is horrifying and totally shocking.  It seems that no one was expecting such a extreme weather event.

[Andy Hayter]

3 hours ago, Nearholmer said:

That photo is amazing/appalling/intriguing. I’ve been trying to work out what the topography of the area must be to cause that affect. Is it the edge of a plateau?

 

Whatever it is, those who live there have my sympathy - one sort of doesn’t expect a super-civilised place like Germany to get whacked by natural disasters, ditto Canada - let’s hope we all learn from it.

Erftstadt is raised up on the west side of the Rhine valley - slightly rolling countryside.  I used to drive by on a regular basis and it is not the sort of place you would mark down as a flood risk.  I had work colleagues who lived near there - indeed I did not live that far away.  

[Andy Hayter]

Perhaps to add:  Ahrtal (Ahr valley) and its towns of Ahrweiler, Schuld etc where a lot of the news film is from is different being in a relatively narrow valley with wooded hills on both sides are indeed places you could imagine might flood but not to the extent that has happened.

 

To put this into a UK context think of Hebdon Bridge with wooded hillsides - which it probably once had.  

[Andy Hayter]

And perhaps still further clarification (I tend to forget that others will not know the geography)  the river Ahr goes nowhere near Erftstadt  in fact it drains away to the south and directly into the Rhine.  So the two events are liked only by the storm and not by direct  geography.

[monkeysarefun]

 

He doesnt have "Mad Scientist Hair" for nothing!

 

 

 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/16/englands-covid-unlocking-a-threat-to-the-world-experts-say

 

 

 

Edited July 17, 2021 by monkeysarefun

[Compound2632]

5 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

He doesnt have "Mad Scientist Hair" for nothing!

 

As far As I'm aware, the closest he's come to a mad scientist was when condescending to science students at Oxford - they were pretty livid.

[burgundy]

12 hours ago, Andy Hayter said:

Perhaps to add:  Ahrtal (Ahr valley) and its towns of Ahrweiler, Schuld etc where a lot of the news film is from is different being in a relatively narrow valley with wooded hills on both sides are indeed places you could imagine might flood but not to the extent that has happened.

 

To put this into a UK context think of Hebdon Bridge with wooded hillsides - which it probably once had.  

Very sad to hear the news of the flooding in Germany and Belgium. I lived in the Rheinland for three years and the Ahrtal was one of our local outings - often for wine tasting. 

Like Andy, I can understand how the flooding has happened in close narrow valleys but it has also happened in more open areas. 

The attached photo, taken during the centenary celebrations on the Ahrtal railway line, gives an impression of the steep valley sides.  The eastern end of the railway line that runs up the valley joins onto the Remagen bridge which has its own thread on RMWeb. 

Best wishes 

Eric  

[Regularity]

22 hours ago, Andy Hayter said:

To put this into a UK context think of Hebdon Bridge with wooded hillsides - which it probably once had. 

Quite possibly until the 2015 floods!

Actually, a lot of it is still wooded, but not so far down the valley sides as it used to be.

(I live in Tod, and go to Hebden Bridge a couple of times a week to ferry the youngster to music lessons.)

Edited July 17, 2021 by Regularity
Photo added

[Nearholmer]

Delving a bit into the flood-damage in the flatter area in Germany, I think the area is very deep alluvial soil, so that rivers cut down into it, but only very slowly/gently at usual flow rates. With a massive dump of rain in a short period, the flow rates will have increased dramatically, causing even tiny tributaries to slice deeply back into the ground - the difference between running a trickle from a hose across a pile of sand, and firing the full force of the mains across the same pile of sand.

 

There must be places in the U.K. that would be vulnerable to the same, Leighton Buzzard area, Surrey Heaths, east of Kings Lynn etc, where the soils are very fragile unless we’ll covered with trees.

[webbcompound]

2 hours ago, Nearholmer said:

Delving a bit into the flood-damage in the flatter area in Germany, I think the area is very deep alluvial soil, so that rivers cut down into it, but only very slowly/gently at usual flow rates. With a massive dump of rain in a short period, the flow rates will have increased dramatically, causing even tiny tributaries to slice deeply back into the ground - the difference between running a trickle from a hose across a pile of sand, and firing the full force of the mains across the same pile of sand.

 

There must be places in the U.K. that would be vulnerable to the same, Leighton Buzzard area, Surrey Heaths, east of Kings Lynn etc, where the soils are very fragile unless we’ll covered with trees.

And as a result the usual warnings given to places known to be liable to flood would have been, and in future will be, irrelevant to these newly threatened areas. This example from 2009 in County Durham where torrential rain created a similar issue  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/wear/8200932.stm

 

[monkeysarefun]

Downunder we've always had a soft spot for a decent UK comedian, especially when they come here and are all funny like The Goodies, or that Dick  bloke that dressed up like ladies, or Geoff Boycott or Tony Hancock until he went and killed himself but this ones a new one on me, and gotta admit, except that she looks a bit like a bloke, so far I can't really get the humour but I'll keep trying.

 

https://www.smh.com.au/national/katie-hopkins-admits-to-breaking-hotel-quarantine-rules-in-sydney-20210717-p58al3.html

 

 

Edited July 17, 2021 by monkeysarefun

[uax6]

Thats because she isn't funny in any way... 

 

Is there a way she can get locked up permanently?

 

 

Andy G

[Annie]

18 minutes ago, monkeysarefun said:

Downunder we've always had a soft spot for a decent UK comedian, especially when they come here and are all funny like The Goodies, or that Dick  bloke that dressed up like ladies, or Geoff Boycott or Tony Hancock until he went and killed himself but this ones a new one on me, and gotta admit, except that she looks a bit like a bloke, so far I can't really get the humour but I'll keep trying.

 

https://www.smh.com.au/national/katie-hopkins-admits-to-breaking-hotel-quarantine-rules-in-sydney-20210717-p58al3.html

 

 

Seriously?  She gives idiots a bad name.  

[uax6]

Thats unfair on idiots... 

 

 

Andy G

[Hroth]

7 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

Downunder we've always had a soft spot for a decent UK comedian, especially when they come here and are all funny like The Goodies, or that Dick  bloke that dressed up like ladies, or Geoff Boycott or Tony Hancock until he went and killed himself but this ones a new one on me, and gotta admit, except that she looks a bit like a bloke, so far I can't really get the humour but I'll keep trying.

 

https://www.smh.com.au/national/katie-hopkins-admits-to-breaking-hotel-quarantine-rules-in-sydney-20210717-p58al3.html

 

 

 

Never heard of her!

 

[Annie]

34 minutes ago, Hroth said:

 

Never heard of her!

 

Soon to be Darwin Award recipient judging by her behaviour.

[monkeysarefun]

1 hour ago, Annie said:

Soon to be Darwin Award recipient judging by her behaviour.

 

Occasionally tourists mistake baited crocodile traps for a Great Place To Swim.

 

Hopefully she's one of those.

 

 

 

 

Edited July 18, 2021 by monkeysarefun

[monkeysarefun]

Well that didn't last long.

 

https://www.smh.com.au/national/katie-hopkins-dropped-from-big-brother-vip-after-quarantine-comments-20210718-p58aps.html

[CKPR]

11 hours ago, uax6 said:

Thats unfair on idiots... 

As Eccles from The Goon Show once opined, I'm not completely useless - I can serve as a bad example !

[CKPR]

3 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

 

Occasionally tourists mistake baited crocodile traps for a Great Place To Swim.

 

Hopefully she's one of those.

 

 

 

 

Where's the 'strewth' button when you need it ?!

[rocor]

12 hours ago, uax6 said:

Thats because she isn't funny in any way... 

 

Is there a way she can get locked up permanently?

 

 

Andy G

 

Sectioning under the Mental Health Act 1983?

[Edwardian]

After a weekend visiting the Aged Ps, I needed to call in at my local supermarket for some fresh provisions.

 

I was very heartened that everyone, regardless of age, and including a number of teens, was wearing their mask in the supermarket. 

 

Whether this was due to a peculiarly local form of Mass Civil Disobedience, or a recognition of the need to save the unaccountably still popular Prime Minister from the consequences of his own stupidity, or through plain fear or good old Common Sense, I cannot, of course, say.

 

But well done Barney! 

[Hroth]

On 18/07/2021 at 10:14, monkeysarefun said:

Well that didn't last long.

 

https://www.smh.com.au/national/katie-hopkins-dropped-from-big-brother-vip-after-quarantine-comments-20210718-p58aps.html

 

On 18/07/2021 at 12:12, rocor said:

 

Sectioning under the Mental Health Act 1983?

 

I see the Australians have demonstrated a modicum of common sense, they've deported her!  I hope we have the equal sense to enfoce a mandatory 14 day quarantine once she arrives back on these shores...

 

12 minutes ago, Edwardian said:

... I needed to call in at my local supermarket for some fresh provisions.

 

I was very heartened that everyone, regardless of age, and including a number of teens, was wearing their mask in the supermarket. 

 

Perhaps they were ensuring that former Government Advisors would be instantly conspicuous? 

 

Whatever, its too damn hot, and looks set for the rest of the week.  Bring forward Autumn!!!