Military personnel are to remain available to assist local authorities and Gold Commands as efforts begin to move from flood relief to recovery work, Vigilance can reveal.
The Ministry of Defence has offered assistance to the civilian authorities leading the coordinating of support for communities and residents in affected areas. The activity is expected to centre around key priorities aimed at providing emergency support, protecting national and local infrastructure and support and reassurance to communities.
Key tasks are likely to include:
Emergency response such as use of search and rescue helicopters and specialist vehicles
active flood defence work such as engineering and sandbagging
reviewing and repairing flood defences;
distribution of emergency supplies;
removal and disposal of fallen trees;
recovery of flood damaged furnishings from homes;
removal of temporary flood defences, where no longer needed
embedding liaison officers within affected local authorities and other Government Departments
support to vulnerable or isolated communities.
The offer follows Defence Secretary Philip Hammond’s announcement over the weekend that Armed Forces personnel will assist in the assessment of flood defences across the country. More than 200 personnel will be trained by the Environment Agency to carry out the work over the next six weeks.
Minister for the Armed Forces Mark Francois said: “The military will continue to support flood relief efforts for as long as their help is required and that includes the next phase of the operation centered around recovery and clean-up work. From providing visible public reassurance to sandbagging, building flood defences, assisting cut-off communities and launching aircraft to capture imagery of flooded areas, the military have been on hand to support the local authorities in dealing with some of the worst flooding in living memory. The Government is committed to helping those affected get back on their feet and the Armed Forces will continue to play their part.”
At its peak, more than 5,000 personnel have been committed to help with flood relief operations with thousands more troops remaining available if required. Around 200 Reservists have played a role as part of the deployment that has seen personnel from the Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force providing support.
Major General Patrick Sanders, Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff (Operations), who is co-ordinating the military response from the MOD in London, said: “Alongside the civilian authorities, our Armed Forces have played a significant role in the flood relief operation across affected areas of the country. The efforts have been welcomed by members of the public who have been reassured by the presence and support of more than 3,500 service personnel in what has been an extremely difficult time for residents whose homes have been under water. It will of course take time to return people’s lives to normal but as the flood relief efforts transition to a recovery stage the military will remain available to take on new tasks to assist in the clean-up operation being coordinated by the local authorities. Service personnel including reservists across the Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force are proud to assist and will continue to do so as long as they required.”
Current ongoing deployments include:
In Chertsey, Surrey, personnel from the 19 Regiment Royal Artillery are assisting with the removal and redeployment of the 600m “Aquadam”, moving it from Chertsey, to Kennley.
A military presence remains in Hampshire with a squadron of Royal Engineers constructing metal sheet barriers in an attempt to stem and divert the River Test around Romsey.
Following recces over the weekend and earlier this week, over 25 military personnel from 3 Div Signal Regiment have been deployed on the Isle of Wight, providing assistance with general duties as required and helping individuals evacuate from their homes.
Royal Engineer personnel continue to carry out their taskings at Chesil Beach in Dorset, repairing the beach sea defences.
In Saltmore, military personnel from 53 Squadron and 64 Works Group Royal Engineers have now begun constructing an engineering pipeline to ensure a constant delivery of fuel is made to Saltmore Pumping Station. This task is estimated to take three days.
Military personnel remain embedded in various Silver and Gold Command headquarters across flood-affected areas in order to help facilitate emerging requests for assistance quickly and effectively.