Whaley Bridge dam emergency - live: Reservoir wall at ‘high risk’ of collapse as entire town near Manchester evacuated amid major flood fears

Derbyshire town evacuated as water level rises

Whaley Bridge: Derbyshire town evacuated as Toddbrook Reservoir dam wall collapses

Emergency services are working to secure a dam amid fears it could collapse after damage caused by extreme weather.

An evacuation has been launched and members of the public are being warned to stay out of the area around Derbyshire's Toddbrook Reservoir, near Manchester, after officials discovered the damage.

Authorities have told members of the public to "stay away" from the area in case residents and businesses need to be evacuated.

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Key Points

• 'It's terrifying': Residents flee homes as water rises
• Whaley Bridge evacuated by police
• Public told to avoid affected area
• Images reveal damage to reservoir wall

[1 August 2019 16:39 · Chris Baynes]

Sandbags are being delivered to reinforce the damaged dam:

[1 August 2019 16:47 · Chris Baynes]

This is from my colleague Colin Drury in Whaley Bridge: 

The rumour is that, if the weather holds, the reservoir wall should survive. Unfortunately, these clouds are now gathering above the village...

[1 August 2019 16:55 · Chris Baynes]

Residents of Whaley Bridge have been gathering at a secondary school in the nearby town of Chapel-en-le-Frith, where an evacuation centre and assembly point for emergency services has been set up.

Derbyshire Police said officers and staff were at the school to give further direction but "at this time we aren't sure how long the evacuation will take".

Residents have been asked to arrange to stay with family and friends if possible, take any pets with them, and ensure they have enough medication for "a number of days".

[1 August 2019 16:59 · Chris Baynes]

Here's Colin Drury's latest dispatch from Whaley Bridge, where the forecast rain has arrived:

It is now bucketing down, and the mood at the evacuation centre is grim. “This isn’t good,” retired landlord Peter Woolis tells me. “This could finish it off.”

[1 August 2019 17:05 · Chris Baynes]

About a third of Whaley Bridge's population has been evacuated, according to Manchester Evening News reporter Chris Slater. Those on higher ground have been allowed to stay, but residents in low-lying areas and the high street have been cleared out.

[1 August 2019 17:15 · Chris Baynes]

BBC reporter Andy Gill has tweeted this footage of an emergency pump arriving at the Whaley Bridge dam: 

[1 August 2019 17:34 · Chris Baynes]

Squads of police officers have arrived at Chapel-en-le-Frith High School, which has been hastily converted into a reception centre for hundreds of evacuated Whaley Bridge residents.

Dozens of police Land Rovers and vans have been arriving and leaving the car park of the school, two miles away from Whaley Bridge.

Residents have been arriving with suitcases, with some heading for a sports centre hall where they will spend the night if friends or family cannot house them.

Paul Nash, who has been evacuated along with partner Janet Williams, said: "We went to work as normal, then we found out we needed to evacuate so we've been back home, got the cat, got what we needed to and that's as far as we know at the moment.

"At the moment there's no updates really, no-one knows anything, so we are in the dark really, we've not been told we can go back.

"If the whole dam goes, it's going to cause absolute chaos. Probably the village will go, because it goes straight through. The River Goyt goes straight through the village centre.

"Everything is in the house we've worked for, worked hard for, some things can't ever be replaced.

"Obviously the experts are telling us it might go, there's still a chance it might not. No-one knows when we can go back.

"We've come down here to check in because they've told us if we check in, there's no chance of them coming to knock the door down to check we are not still there."

[1 August 2019 17:48 · Chris Baynes]

All roads into Whaley Bridge have now been closed by police: 

[1 August 2019 18:18 · Chris Baynes]

It could take several days for firefighters to pump enough water out of Toddbrook reservoir to make Whaley Bridge safe, the National Fire Chiefs Council (NPCC) has said.

Ten high-volume pumps are in use at the reservoir, which contains 1.3m tonnes of water. 

The pumps, capable of moving 7,000 litres a minute, will shift water to other locations to reduce the pressure on the reservoir and the rising River Goyt.

"This has now been declared a major incident and it is anticipated that this incident will last between two to three days," the NFCC said.

[1 August 2019 19:24 · Chris Baynes]

Rebecca Simpson, a woman evacuated from Whaley Bridge with her children, has been speaking to PA:

This morning at 8.30am I walked over the dam with our dog and it was okay, but it quickly became apparent that the amount of water we had yesterday was too much and was causing a big run-off.

The sluices were opened mid-morning but there's so much water and it's now currently raining very hard again. There's nowhere for it to go, the river has already burst its banks and the ground is sodden.

All roads were closed midday and we all got asked to evacuate about two hours ago. Now we're stuck in traffic in the outlying town of New Mills as everyone is trying to leave and some local roads are flooded. My children are coping well after being worried this morning.

I don't think I would class it as scary; lots of experts on hand and it seemed well managed. The scary part will be what happens next as all services - such as electricity, gas and medical services, and the primary school - are in the direct line of the water.