An inch of rain in a few hours!

Friday, February 26, 2010

By Natalie Nightingale

According to Nigel Heasman’s website at www.nigelheasman.com there has been 2.3cm of rain in the last few hours and at 6am this rain is still continuing. This winter has seen a remarkable amount of flooding and the current rain storms are set to carry on until tomorrow at least.

There are many stories of reservoirs being full and overflowing and locally a ravine has developed into a rapidly flowing stream, something that to my knowledge has not happened for the last decade at least. This rain is also exposing poor construction practices and at one site an access road has developed a huge crack and is in danger of falling into the ravine, “Support” walls have collapsed and more are in danger of following. The roofs of many villas have also been shown to not be water-tight.

Rain is to Cyprus as snow is to England, something they are not prepared for. Roads are again becoming difficult to navigate and I’m sure that I’ll again see a variety of Cypriot driver responses to flooded roads, from a great reluctance to venture in the water to water-logged cars stuck axle deep. Even as I type, at 6.30am, I can hear from the cascading rain that my intended journey to Kyrenia is going to be one peppered with incidents; that’s if I’m foolish enough to venture away from the warmth of the log burning stove.

Nigel’s website now shows that this current storm has released 2.6cm of rain, 3mm in a very short time!

http://www.nigelheasman.com/wview/img/Current_Conditions.htm

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This entry was posted on Friday, February 26th, 2010 at 4:44 am and is filed under Environment. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

polly

26/02/2010 at 5:41 am

Why is it that so many builders fail to recognise that the
pre requisite of a roof is that it be water tight.

Good Contribution. Constructive or Abusive: 7 0

#4684

Malcolm Channing

26/02/2010 at 6:34 am

Today’s storm has deposited 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) of rain so far and still does not look as if it is stopping.

Good Contribution. Constructive or Abusive: 6 0

#4685

26/02/2010 at 6:44 am

Malcolm I know buckets and towels everwhere!!!!!!

#4686

Kyriacos

26/02/2010 at 9:07 am

At least we are prepared for snow though!

#4692

robert gatt

26/02/2010 at 10:13 am

you’ve got rain, we’ve got blizzards, rain, floods and some landslides, think of those poor people in madeira last week, i wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy, would you!

Good Contribution. Constructive or Abusive: 5 0

#4694

26/02/2010 at 3:27 pm

I am getting very concerned, my neighbour is building something that looks like an ark!!!

Still emptying buckets and wringing out towels – is it ever
going to stop.

Good Contribution. Constructive or Abusive: 4 0

#4710

26/02/2010 at 3:37 pm

The stream in the ravine has turned into a raging torrent and is undermining a road leading up to an estate. A neighbour’s drive has similarly collapsed because the foundations are being washed away. Apparently the Oram’s villa has been washed onto a piece of land not owned by Mr A and the area around the Gönyeli dam is meters under water. They are evacuating people as I write.

#4711

26/02/2010 at 3:43 pm

Blimey!!! Image thanks to Dutch Crusader

#4712

26/02/2010 at 4:31 pm

Oh Malcolm you are a one – I’m the other one.

I’m still laughing about the Orams villa!!

#4716

26/02/2010 at 4:54 pm

oh, behave Polly!

#4718

26/02/2010 at 9:43 pm

Damn this global worming.. My parents 25year-old house on the South floated as well just before this christmas. This is the first time since it was builded such a thing occurred. The Government gave us 10.000 euros but we are thinking on suing them. We filed a complain and asked for measures to be taken even though the area had infrastructure. 2 months later they came and builded new wells from one side of the street across the other and connected them to the sewer.. Todays rain did not affected us, (thank god..)

#4727