More flooding at Hauxley
Low Hauxley allotments have seen extensive flooding again, and the new pond at the entrance to Hauxley Nature Reserve has also seen a rise in levels. The area flooded for many months last year until a drain outfall was unblocked.
Low Hauxley resident and allotment holder Dave Cook told The Ambler: “The flooding has slowly crept up this January, this last week it’s grown big time. One allotment holder has hens on his land and he can’t get down there with his wheelbarrow to feed them. Last year they said the problem was sorted, so where this has come from, I don’t know.”
Water from gullies on Hauxley Lane is directed via a culvert towards the new pond at the entrance to the Nature Reserve, and then onwards to a drain outfall on the beach. High water table levels in recent years have coincided with the appearance of the new pond, and extensive flooding along Hauxley Lane and in the allotments.
A spokesperson for Hauxley Parish Council said “We have met with Northumberland County Council on site last week. There is very little water coming from the culvert so they think the pipe must be blocked. They are hoping to have contractors on site very soon to clear it in the hope this will alleviate the flooding.
When I took the photos the only smells were of rotting seaweed and a dead seal further along. The black water was flowing freely and quite fast. Yesterday the water was clear and fast flowing, there was a piece of seaweed stuck but we couldn’t get it out.