Somerset Levels floods, winter 2013 to 2014

A record run of winter storms

Atlantic depressions crossed Britain one after another from December to February, giving the UK 486.8 mm of rain, the most for any winter on record. The ground was saturated by Christmas, so later storms produced runoff almost immediately and river levels never had time to fall.

Low-lying drained wetland

The Levels are former marshland, drained over centuries and kept dry by ditches and pumping stations. Much of the land lies close to sea level, so water flows onto it from the surrounding hills but cannot drain away by gravity. Once the fields flooded, the water simply sat there for weeks.

Silted river channels

The Rivers Parrett and Tone had not been dredged for around 20 years, and silt had built up in their channels. With less room to carry water, the rivers overflowed sooner and more often than they would have done with clear channels, which is why dredging became the loudest local demand.

High tides blocking drainage

The Levels drain into the Bristol Channel, which has one of the biggest tidal ranges in the world. High tides pushed seawater up the Parrett and held river water back inland, so even when the rain paused the floodwater on the moors was slow to escape to the sea.

Primary

• Around 6,900 hectares of farmland were under water for several weeks.
• Over 600 homes and 16 farms were evacuated.
• Villages including Muchelney and Moorland were cut off when the roads around them flooded.
• Main routes across the moors, including the A361, were closed for weeks.

Secondary

• Around a thousand livestock had to be moved off flooded farms.
• Residents lived in temporary accommodation for months while homes dried out.
• Journeys to school, work and shops needed long detours or boats.
• Local businesses lost trade while the area was cut off and in the news.

Social

• Families spent months out of their homes after the water went down.
• The long isolation and uncertainty were stressful for cut-off communities.
• Volunteers and community groups organised boat lifts, supplies and shelter for neighbours.

Economic

• Somerset County Council put the cost of the damage at over £10 million.
• Farmers lost winter grazing and crops, and flooded fields stayed unusable into spring.
• The clean up and the £100 million action plan that followed were major public costs.

Environmental

• Floodwater mixed with sewage, fuel and farm chemicals spread across the moors.
• Waterlogged soils were left compacted and grassland died back after weeks under water.
• Later dredging changed the channels and banks of the Parrett and Tone.

Immediate

• Giant pumps, some brought from the Netherlands, worked around the clock to move water off the moors.
• Boats carried residents, schoolchildren and supplies in and out of cut-off villages such as Muchelney.
• Royal Marines and emergency services helped evacuate homes and build sandbag defences.
• The government promised extra money for affected households and farmers.

Long term

• The £100 million, 20 year Somerset Levels and Moors Flood Action Plan was agreed in 2014.
• An 8 km stretch of the Rivers Parrett and Tone was dredged within the year, removing around 130,000 cubic metres of silt.
• The road into Muchelney was raised so the village keeps a dry route in future floods.
• The Somerset Rivers Authority was created to fund ongoing maintenance, and a tidal barrier on the Parrett at Bridgwater was planned.