Summary

  • Horwich End residents allowed back home

  • Meeting tomorrow to decide if Whaley Bridge residents can go home

  • Amount of water drained surpasses 9m

  • Emergency services continue to drain Toddbrook Reservoir

  • Chinook drops more aggregate on to dam wall

  • Twenty people in 16 properties still refusing to evacuate

  • Some train services set to resume

  1. Security concerns raised in Whaley Bridgepublished at 17:45 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Duncan Leatherdale
    BBC News Online

    Ms Swann said people have raised concerns about the security of their homes.

    She said: "We are monitoring the area including with drones.

    "We had one report of a suspected burglary, we found no sign of forced entry."

    She added that they also had reports of a couple of prowlers the other evening, which turned out to be police officers.

  2. Extra caution 'due to weather warning'published at 17:45 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Duncan Leatherdale
    BBC News Online

    Deputy Chief Constable Rachel Swann said they were being extra careful as there was a yellow weather warning in place for Whaley Bridge at the weekend.

    She said: "We’ve got to be sure it’s safe, so you don’t go home and have to come out again.

    "You can see just by looking at it the dam is damaged."

    Whaley BridgeImage source, AFP/GETTY IMAGES
  3. Fire crews to carry on pumpingpublished at 17:37 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Duncan Leatherdale
    BBC News Online

    Derbyshire's chief fire officer Terry McDermott has told the meeting the level of 8m was achieved at 09:30 this morning.

    He said: "We are carrying on pumping until someone who does the maths tells me to stop.

    "A little challenge to myself is to try and beat the mathematicians by emptying the reservoir before they work out the numbers.

    "The pumping rate is accelerating as we go so hopefully overnight we can make a lot more progress."

  4. Environment Agency still running checkspublished at 17:37 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Duncan Leatherdale
    BBC News Online

    Deputy chief constable Rachel Swann said the Environment Agency was still running checks.

    She said: "What I really don’t want is every time it starts raining you panic 'am I going to have to leave my home'. That’s no way to live."

    She added that there will be a meeting at 12:00 tomorrow, and as soon as she has that sign off of good news "I will tell you".

    "I can’t promise you but I’m really really hopeful. Please bear with us," she said.

  5. Two roads to reopenpublished at 17:31 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Duncan Leatherdale
    BBC News Online

    Deputy Chief Constable Rachel Swann also said the B5420 Chapel Road and Macclesfield Road will be reopened.

    All other roads will remain closed.

  6. People at Horwich End can go homepublished at 17:28 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Duncan Leatherdale
    BBC News Online

    Derbyshire Police's deputy chief constable Rachel Swann has told the meeting people living in Horwich End can go home.

    She said the Environment Agency was still running checks and there would be a further meeting at 12:00 tomorrow.

  7. People filing into residents' meetingpublished at 17:22 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Duncan Leatherdale
    BBC News Online

    People are now filing into the school hall and I suspect every seat will be taken.

    Volunteers from St John’s Ambulance are handing out bottles of water and Edwina Currie is urging people to move along the rows to fill in all the gaps.

    Meeting
  8. Engineers to decide when is safe for residents to returnpublished at 17:19 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Samantha Fisher
    BBC News Online

    Now the water has reached a safe level engineers will view the wall's damage and decide when it will be safe for people to return to Whaley Bridge, police have said in an update on their website.

    Toddbrook Reservoir's water level is now down by 8.4 m after water has continued to be pumped out for the sixth day.

    Work continues to shore up the dam at Toddbrook Reservoir near the village of Whaley BridgeImage source, PA

    Derbyshire Police's Deputy Chief Constable Rachel Swann said: “It is crucial that the inspections are now made by experts to ensure that the dam wall is safe prior to residents returning to their homes.

    “I appreciate that this has been a traumatic time for the people evacuated and everyone is working around the clock to ensure that they can return to their homes and businesses as soon as is safe to do so."

    A Royal Air Force Chinook transports sandbags as work continues to shore up the dam at Toddbrook ReservoirImage source, PA

    She added that their main concern remains the safety of the public in Whaley Bridge and people will only be allowed to return when it is deemed "absolutely safe".

    Officers are going to be in and around the Whaley Bridge area conducting patrols following residents' concerns about the safety of their properties.

    The drone also remains in the area to conduct crime prevention patrols and officers remain at the cordon around the town.

  9. Crowds of residents wait for meetingpublished at 16:59 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Duncan Leatherdale
    BBC News Online

    Many residents are waiting to find out when they can return to their homes in Whaley Bridge, after being evacuated last week.

    A meeting for business owners affected by the evacuation will also be held later at 18:30 BST in Chapel-en-le-Frith High School.

    Crowds outside Chapel-en-le-Frith High School

    Resident Chris Slugg left his home in Canal Street on Friday afternoon.

    He has been staying at his sister's home in Chapel-en-le-Frith and is eager to get home, but only if it is safe.

    “It is what it is, there’s nothing you can do, what will be will be.”

    He said people who had refused to leave their homes were being “downright stupid”, adding: “It’s not just their lives they are risking but those of the emergency services who would have to go and rescue them as well.”

  10. County council thanks community for supportpublished at 16:48 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Derbyshire County Council has thanked people for supporting residents evacuated from Whaley Bridge.

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  11. Evacuated residents to find out if they can return homepublished at 16:40 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Duncan Leatherdale
    BBC News

    People are starting to arrive for a meeting hoping to find out when they can return home.

    The meeting will start at Chapel-en-le-Frith High School at 17:00 with police due to give an update.

    Whaley Bridge is still shut off meaning a major detour to get to Chapel, which is only about four miles away from the evacuated town.

    Chapel-en-le-Frith High School car park
  12. Aerial shots reveal reservoir droppublished at 16:03 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    The water level at the reservoir in Whaley Bridge has dropped by more than eight metres.

    Read More
  13. Passerby captures RAF Chinook in actionpublished at 15:50 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Sonia Kataria
    BBC News

    Passerby Alexis Platts took the wrong road in Whaley Bridge and "stumbled" across the RAF Chinook coming in to pick up aggregate...

    Alexis Platts captured RAF Chinook in actionImage source, Alexis Platts
    Alexis Platts captured RAF Chinook in actionImage source, Alexis Platts
    Alexis Platts captured RAF Chinook in actionImage source, Alexis Platts
    Alexis Platts captured RAF Chinook in actionImage source, Alexis Platts
  14. Fire service continues work to secure dam wallpublished at 15:25 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Samantha Fisher
    BBC News Online

    Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service is still working hard with its partners to secure the dam wall at Whaley Bridge.

    They have thanked everyone working there and in the area for their continued support and patience.

    Toddbrook ReservoirImage source, Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service
    Toddbrook ReservoirImage source, Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service
    Toddbrook ReservoirImage source, Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service
  15. Whaley Bridge residents helpline open into the eveningpublished at 14:55 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Samantha Fisher
    BBC News Online

    Derbyshire County Council has said the helpline for evacuated residents will be open today until 20:00.

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  16. Aerial footage shows how far water has droppedpublished at 14:45 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Roger Johnson
    Presenter, BBC North West Tonight

    New footage taken from above the Toddbrook Reservoir shows the drop in the water level, which has fallen 8m (26ft) since drainage started six days ago.

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  17. Father saw start of partial dam collapsepublished at 14:29 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    BBC North West Tonight

    Father Jamie McLeod, from Whaley Hall retreat, said he was one of the first people at the scene of the partial dam collapse.

    He said he saw a yellow substance coming out of the reservoir at about 10:00 on Thursday as the sluice keeper arrived.

    Jamie McLeod

    Father McLeod said: "The concrete on top cracked. He heard the concrete crack and I said to him ‘I think we need to evacuate’.

    "I then went to the mechanics institute to get two of the councillors, we came back and that was the start of the procedure."

  18. Water level target reached at Whaley Bridge dampublished at 14:10 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Water levels at Toddbrook Reservoir are now low enough for engineers to assess the damage.

    Read More
  19. Pharmacist picks up medication from evacuation zonepublished at 14:07 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    Samantha Fisher
    BBC News Online

    Pharmacist Raj Modi has been working hard to make sure patients of a pharmacy in Whaley Bridge's evacuation zone get the medication they need.

    Well Pharmacy on Market Street has been closed since Thursday afternoon.

    Raj ModiImage source, Well Pharmacy

    Mr Modi organised visits to the pharmacy with police on Friday, Sunday, Monday and today so he could identify the most vulnerable patients in need of urgent medication.

    The pharmacy manager said: "They [the police] let me come through the zone and I had to check in every half an hour."

    He has delivered medication to those living outside the evacuation zone, and organised for the rest to be collected by patients at local drop-off points.

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    Mr Modi said: "During this difficult time, I have tried my best to help and support everyone that I can.

    "I wanted to bring some calm to the situation by making sure people were not worried about their medication."

  20. Evacuee filmed house 'just in case'published at 13:43 British Summer Time 6 August 2019

    BBC Radio 5 Live

    Rosie Marshall-Shield is one of those hoping to be allowed home later today.

    She was one of the 1,500 Whaley Bridge residents evacuated since Thursday over fears the damaged dam might burst.

    Road closed in Whaley BridgeImage source, Derbyshire Police

    She said: "We were one of the lucky ones, we were allowed in on Saturday morning.

    "It was heart-breaking, 15 minutes just to run into your house, just throwing stuff in like a few pairs of underpants and socks.

    "I did take a video of the house at the front, just in case it was the last time we were going to come to the house."